MIAMI, Fla. (June 11, 2020) - While there are much larger issues in the world, there is no denying that people are missing the unity and collective experience that sports brings. Fans, players and clubs have all shared communications about this topic but there is one key component of sports the world has not heard from, the stadiums.
Today, Inter Miami CF released a video interpretation of the Club’s new poem “We Are The Sky”, which pays tribute to the missing emotions of a matchday from the perspective of Inter Miami CF Stadium, as Major League Soccer inches closer to resuming the season with yesterday’s return to play announcement. Rookie goalkeeper Drake Callender summoned his poetry writing abilities to put pen to paper and express to fans and the community what they mean for the stadium, who awaits its inaugural home debut.
“As a fan first Club, our goal was to underscore that while the world is on hold for reasons much more important than sport, our fans remain the heart and soul of our stadium, our club and for our players no matter the circumstances,” said Inter Miami CF VP of Brand & Marketing Michael Ridley. “Our stadium has never had the opportunity to speak to the world because the season was suspended 48 hours before the home opener on what would’ve been March 14, 2020, and Drake was able to nail the emotion the piece required through his unique perspective and relationship with his home stadium as a player.”
“We are the Sky” written by Drake Callender
The darkest hours summon the brightest lights,
and in this light,
the herons fly.
Alike the herons, I’ve embodied stillness,
and since I can’t impress, I must confess…
You are the heart,
you are the soul,
you are the presence that makes me feel whole,
you are the community I was built for,
you are the fans that we fly for.
“My goal with this poem was to convey the feelings of the new stadium as if it were alive. As if it had its own personal reality and how that personal reality is affecting how it feels,” said Callender. “When I mention the darkest hours summon the brightest lights, I’m meaning that right now we are in very dark hours, but in these times of need is when we come together as a community and shed light on what we need to do to get better. I use the metaphor of the brightest lights in reference to the lights of the stadium. When the lights of the stadium turn on, then the herons fly, the herons kind of like being the team.”
“This is just to sum up how the stadium and everyone at the club feels. The team plays for the fans. We miss the fans and we miss the games,” added Callender.
