San Diego FC’s Right to Dream Academy is officially open.
It’s a fully-funded residential school and soccer program for young players.
“It's been one of the best experiences I've had if not the best. I just don't want to leave to my parents house when we go,”11-year-old Nicolas Bolivar said.
He plays as a striker and was one of the lucky few who made the academy’s first youth club. His team will take advantage of the new facilities in El Cajon on the Sycuan Reservation.
Thousands of young boys from San Diego and Tijuana tried out for the new program.
He was there on the academy’s opening day with his family, who are originally from Guadalajara, Mexico. They moved to Chula Vista about five years ago.
His dad Manuel Bolivar said in Spanish that he and his wife are proud of what their son has achieved and are impressed by the professionalism of the team and academy.
The MLS said it’s the first-of-its-kind program in the league.
At the academy, youth soccer players live and go to school on site and train alongside the professionals from the local Major League Soccer team.
“We see them eating almost everyday in the cafeteria,” Bolivar said of the SDFC players. “So we just see, all of my teammates, how professional they are, and we just copy them so we can be professional like them.”
Twelve-year-old center-back Thiago Terrazas also made the team. He’s from Tijuana and is learning English at the academy.
He said living and playing alongside his idols, like SDFC’s Mexican star Hirving "Chucky" Lozano, is powerful.
“It means a lot because he has a lot of history, and he was like for me, the best player here in San Diego,” Terrazas said.
Bolivar is fully bilingual. He said he’s trying to help Terrazas and other players with language barriers.
“Its been really nice speaking both languages because I can talk with people that don't speak Spanish or don't speak English,” Bolivar said.
Because the academy is free and tied to a local pro team, it offers a pipeline that young players in the region never had before.
“I hope it leads to me being professional in a few years and be one of the greatest,” Bolivar said.
The academy launched with 17 student-athletes in its U-13 team for the 2025-26 season.
There are plans to expand the academy in future years to additional age groups and girls teams.
