In Miami, soccer balls are turned into one-of-a-kind art

Lili Cantero thinks of soccer as family.

The artist from Paraguay — someone who has built a devoted following in the soccer world, with her work admired by Argentina captain and Inter Miami star Lionel Messi, among others — still has fond childhood memories of gathering with relatives around a radio to listen to matches almost every weekend.

“That’s where my love for the game began,” Cantero said. “For me, soccer, futbol, is being with family and being with friends. The game is not just a game. It’s a culture. It’s love. It is family. It is friendship.”

And now, it is her work. Leading up to the start of the World Cup in June, Cantero will be putting her specialty - painted soccer balls - in 10 different businesses in the Miami neighbourhood known as Wynwood, a place known for having turned warehouses into art galleries and where just about anything can be turned into a mural.

It is the heartbeat of the Miami art community, and for Cantero, the marriage of her work and soccer seemed a perfect fit.

“I think it’s the perfect combination in the perfect moment with the perfect people,” said Cantero, who has called Miami home for about 2 1/2 years.

“Messi coming in this city was ... an interesting way to grow this sport here in this city and in this country.

Because many kids, they look at him with so many aspirations and dreams and everything, so think they can make a decision to play this sport and also to grow in this sport. And I think that’s beautiful.”

Cantero’s approach is simple: she believes soccer, like art, can bring people of different races, different backgrounds, different languages, different everything, together.

Her biggest break might have come in 2018, when a pair of soccer cleats, she designed — adorned by images of Messi and his family — were sent to the soccer legend.

Messi posed with the cleats; the image of that moment went viral and Cantero suddenly had the game’s official seal of approval.

Diego Maradona and Pele both knew of her work.

Same goes for former Brazil forward Ronaldinho, FIFA President Gianni Infantino and Messi’s former Barcelona and Inter Miami teammate Jordi Alba, among many others.

Her first stop for the Wynwood series of ball displays was last week when she unveiled one depicting how Spain won the 2010 World.