In Miami, soccer balls are turned into one-of-a-kind art as World Cup nears

MIAMI (AP) — 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 neighborhood 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 Cup.

“I feel honored to be known for this art and what I do," Cantero said. “I think art and soccer has the power to change the world. It changed my life, so I can tell that that’s true. And when you go to favelas (a word used to describe impoverished Brazilian neighborhoods) and you see like the kids playing, thinking the only way that they could do something in life is through soccer, that's art for me.”

Wynwood is always bustling; art and fashion dominate the area, and there is no shortage of people working hard to ensure everything stays vibrant. The World Cup will bring tens of thousands of people to South Florida, and Wynwood wants them to know they're all welcome in that art district.

“We’re always promoting the arts, we’re always changing the arts in the neighborhood, the murals,” David Lombardi, the chairman of the Wynwood Business Improvement District, said at the unveiling of Cantero's first ball in this series. “It’s vibrant, it’s changing, it’s alive, and people want to be a part of it.”

Cantero never played the game, but is addicted to the game. She showed up for the first unveiling in a Spain jersey — mindful, yes, of how that nation ousted Paraguay, her homeland, on the way to that title.

Some soccer balls take Cantero days to paint. Others take her just a couple of hours. At the unveiling of this project, she even did some work — setting up a tablet to her left, looking at an image of Spain star David Villa celebrating a goal during that 2010 World Cup.

With deft flicks of her right hand, she added that image of Villa, bit by bit, to the back of the ball, oblivious to the crowd gathered around to watch her work.

Every soccer ball she's designing in this series will depict another World Cup moment.

“I grew up in Paraguay, and everyone tells me you cannot make a living with art. And now I’m doing this, far away from my country, representing who I am and my roots,” Cantero said. "It's been an honor.”

AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup

Artist Lili Cantero pulls up an image she is working from on a screen as she paints a soccer ball commemorating Spain's 2010 World Cup victory as part of the launch of the Wynwood United Soccer Ball Art Trail, which will showcase hand-painted soccer balls honoring historic World Cup championships inside local businesses, April 8, 2026, at Rodilla cafe in the Wynwood district of Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Artist Lili Cantero paints a soccer ball with images commemorating Spain's 2010 World Cup victory as part of the launch of the Wynwood United Soccer Ball Art Trail, which will showcase hand-painted soccer balls honoring historic World Cup championships inside local businesses, April 8, 2026, at Rodilla cafe in the Wynwood district of Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Artist Lili Cantero paints a soccer ball with images commemorating Spain's 2010 World Cup victory as part of the launch of the Wynwood United Soccer Ball Art Trail, which will showcase hand-painted soccer balls honoring historic World Cup championships inside local businesses, April 8, 2026, at Rodilla cafe in the Wynwood district of Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Artist Lili Cantero looks on during the launch of the Wynwood United Soccer Ball Art Trail, which will showcase hand-painted soccer balls honoring historic World Cup championships inside local businesses, April 8, 2026, at Rodilla cafe in the Wynwood district of Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Artist Lili Cantero paints a soccer ball with images commemorating Spain's 2010 World Cup victory as part of the launch of the Wynwood United Soccer Ball Art Trail, which will showcase hand-painted soccer balls honoring historic World Cup championships inside local businesses, April 8, 2026, at Rodilla cafe in the Wynwood district of Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Blessing Muzarabani has been banned from the Pakistan Super League for two years after the Zimbabwe fast bowler withdrew to sign for an Indian Premier League team.

Muzarabani was picked by three-time PSL champion Islamabad United as a replacement for West Indies fast bowler Shamar Jospeh. However, the IPL's Kolkata Knight Riders snapped up the tall fast bowler after they were instructed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India to release Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman.

“Despite a clear offer and an unequivocal acceptance of essential terms, the player (Muzarabani) chose to disregard these obligations in favor of a conflicting arrangement," the Pakistan Cricket Board said in a statement.

“Following a thorough disciplinary review … Blessing Muzarabani is declared ineligible to participate in the next two editions of the PSL, effective immediately.

“This decision stems from a fundamental failure to honor agreed-upon commitments, an action that undermines the professional framework of the league.”

The PCB said it acknowledged the complexities of modern cricket schedules but it will not compromise on the ethical framework that ensures fairness to the franchises and the integrity of the league’s recruitment processes.

Last year, the PCB banned South Africa allrounder Corbin Bosch for one year for a similar breach of agreement. Bosch was picked by PSL franchise Peshawar Zalmi but the IPL's Mumbai Indians contracted him as an injury replacement for countryman Lizaad Williams.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

Kolkata Knight Riders' Blessing Muzarabani bowls a delivery during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Kolkata, India, Thursday, April. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/ Bikas Das)

Kolkata Knight Riders' Blessing Muzarabani, left, and Kolkata Knight Riders' Vaibhav Arora celebrates the wicket of Sunrisers Hyderabad's Shivang Kumar during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Kolkata, India, Thursday, April. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/ Bikas Das)