With Adidas and KITH kicking off their third collaborative release, we spoke to captain of the Miami based KITH Flamingos, Richard Perdomo about the creative culture that surrounds his side. Each KITH team has had bespoke threads made as part of this capsule collection and with fine form, this Miami get up is as good as they go.
Soccer has a long history in South Florida, how would you describe what makes the Miami soccer scene unique
"Miami is a big Hispanic melting pot. Where soccer is a way of living. This latin soccer culture has been adopted by Miami for many years which has led to seeing soccer fields all over the city. It’s really rare in the United States to see soccer take over a city."
For you personally, where does your connection to the sport come from?
"I think I can credit my dad for that [laughs]. My dad is an ex professional soccer player in Honduras. When I was born I had a soccer ball in my crib. The first thing my dad taught me when I started walking was to kick a soccer ball. Soccer is in my blood. I can safely say soccer has always been a great part of my life. I had the opportunity to graduate from one of the best high school (Gulliver Prep) in Florida because of soccer, went on a full soccer scholarship to Creighton University, and also played professional here in the United States and Honduras."
Can you talk about the history and formation of the KITH Flamingos team?
"It stemmed from Kith having a store and a presence in Miami. They had a team in NYC and wanted to start one in Miami. Florencia Galarza is a big part of the foundation of Kith Soccer. Flo and I have been really good friends since our youth club soccer days and have always maintained an amazing relationship. When the opportunity about Kith Flamingo in Miami came about she reached out to me. The task of creating a team here in Miami was really simple. I think it’s safe to say that Miami has had a really strong generation of soccer players born between 1983 and 1999. It’s a generation of players that have been playing together for many years either in club soccer, professional, and adult leagues. It was easy to put together a group of elite players that are friends to be a part of such an amazing project. In addition, we held tryouts to add 4 players to our original team."
We know about The Bowery Premier League inn NYC, but can you tell us about the league you’re a part of in Miami?
"So, were are in a league called West Kendall Premier. This league is considered as one of the best leagues in Miami. As I’ve mentioned previously Miami is a hot bed for soccer players. West Kendall premier is composed of teams that have the vast majority of these elite players. A lot of current and ex professional/college players play year round in this league."
How would you describe the squad?
"Our squad is amazing honestly. It’s composed of a bunch of friends/brothers that grew up playing together. After youth soccer a lot of us split up to go play either in different universities or professional teams. Now we get the opportunity to reunite and play against Miami’s best. Our team is composed of different nationalities such as Honduras, USA, Colombia, Uruguay, Ecuador and Russia."
What’s it like to captain them?
"It’s safe to say that it has been fun to captain this team. It’s a big advantage to lead a team that is composed by players that know each other really well for many years. This makes my job a lot easier as I lead by example in work ethic and light a fire under them when we take the foot off the gas pedal lol."
Tell us about your experiences of playing for the team so far and what it’s achieved?
"So far it has been a blast to play for this team. We have the advantage of growing up playing together so that allows us to understand ourselves real well on the pitch. Playing or watching Kith Flamingos play is definitely a fun experience. We move the ball really well at a fast pace and have exciting players that can break down the defence in one on one situations. We have won 2 out of 3 championships played so far and currently working to get the back to back championship."
How big are the aspirations for a team like this?
"Our biggest aspiration is to keep this group intact and continue to play the beautiful game together as brothers. If playing together as brothers while enjoying the beautiful game brings us championships, trophies and late night beers then that’s suffice."
And what about the mix of characters and personalities in team - is there a good team dynamic?
"The beautiful thing about this team is that we all have different characters and personalities but when we are on the pitch we adapt the same style and culture of playing. Our biggest strength as a team is our great team dynamic."
David Beckham and the MLS are finally set to come to the city - how much is Miami ready to embrace MLS football?
"The key word here is FINALLY. It was about time that the MLS made the decision to finally bring a franchise back to the city of Miami. David Beckham understands the culture we have in Miami and the only thing missing for this city was an MLS soccer team. Miami is more than ready to embrace an MLS football team and we couldn’t be any happier for this to happen. We can finally rep a team of our own instead of following European and South American teams that we rarely get the opportunity to go out and support on a weekly basis at the pitch."
What’s it been like to be part of the team as the KITH x adidas Soccer collaborations have developed?
"It’s been a wonderful experience. As a soccer player to have the opportunity to do what I love most in playing soccer while representing one of the best global brands in KITH x Adidas is a dream come true. From doing commercial/films to photo shoots, the experience has been second to none. Truly Grateful."
From this latest collection, what are some of your favourite pieces?
"I’m a sneakerhead. So definitely the two new sneakers are my favourite. Ace 16+ Ultra Boost with the Patriotic multi-colour look resembling a similar piece of the “Aspen” is my favourite. Then when you add the GOLD ultra-boost inspired by the Copa’s. Ronnie is definitely killing the game. However, I do like the whole concept of being inspired by the 94 USA World Cup kits."
Why do you think fashion become so obsessed with soccer in recent seasons?
"Fashion knows whats up hahahah. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world. The US market continues to embrace it more and more. The popularity of the sport and how attractive it is to all markets has led to Fashion obsessing over the beautiful game."
How disappointing was it that the US failed to qualify for this summer’s World Cup?
Beyond disappointing. As tough as it is for me to say we did not deserve to be in the World Cup. We had many opportunities to control our own destiny and didn’t capitalise. We just missed out an amazing opportunity to continue to capture the hearts of Americans for the beautiful game of soccer. However, I think us failing to qualify to the World Cup will allow USA to take a step back to reflect and make any necessary adjustments to better our soccer system in our country.
Getting the 2026 World Cup, just how big is that going to be for US soccer?
"The news came just at the right time. Americans have been down with the non-participation of USA in the world cup. I feel like the news of hosting 2026 kind of lifted our spirits. This is huge for the US and US soccer. This will be another opportunity for the US to further embrace the soccer culture. In addition, I personally think this will inspire our youth to pursue the soccer dream of representing your country in a World Cup hosted in your backyard."
Does that come at a time where football in the US has never been as popular as it is today?
"Most definitely. The popularity of soccer has been completely drastic. It's incredible to see the attendance at MLS soccer games. Furthermore, to see the amount of kids registered in youth soccer compared to other sports is incredible. The time was right to bring the World Cup to the United States."
How do you see soccer’s relationship with fashion and culture developing between now and then?
"As the popularity of our sport continues to grow in the US the relationship with fashion and culture will continue to grow. It’s safe to say that in the future fashion and culture will be heavily influenced by our soccer culture. We will continue to see every day sneakers inspired by soccer cleats and also clothes inspired by soccer kits. Our soccer culture is catching on and I love it."
The adidas Football x KITH Chapter 3 collection lands on the 29th June exclusively online and in store at KITH.
Photography by Jenny Abrams for SoccerBible
