‘Dreams do come true.’ Driggs teen invited to play soccer in Italy

DRIGGS — A local teenager has been offered a unique opportunity to play soccer in Italy starting this fall.

Kirby Martinez, of Driggs, is a junior at Teton High School where he is on the soccer team. Martinez said he grew up watching his dad and brothers play on a soccer league in Jackson Hole, and he fell in love with the game watching them play.

“At the age of two, I’d kick the ball around the house and play with a soccer ball constantly,” Martinez said.

He eventually started playing on the local rec league, played club for a few years and attended showcases to try and get his name out there.

In Nov. 2025, Martinez attended a soccer camp in Utah for an academy called Rome City Institute. The institute’s website states they are “Italy’s premier institution, uniquely blending international education with the opportunity to play competitive sports at a high level.”

“They liked how I played,” Martinez mentioned. “They contacted me a couple months ago saying that they’d like for me to go play with their youth professional academy over in Rome.”

He continued, “(The academy) is to help build you as a character on the field. There’s some … professional coaches from the European league and they’re helping you out to build you skill-wise and prepare you for the higher-level over there. They prepare you mentally and coach you and all that.”

Martinez accepted a partial scholarship to the Rome City Institute but he still needs to come up with about $30,000. A GoFundMe has been started to help Martinez raise the funds needed to help cover his high school tuition, living quarters, food and travel expenses. To donate, click here.

He said school would start in September and he’d be in Italy for nine months. Martinez recognizes this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and is grateful he’s been offered it.

“I would love to make a name for myself and this community (and) to represent this community that I’ve lived in for many years,” Martinez stated.

Martinez hopes to inspire others and encourages people to chase their dreams and give it their all.

“Dreams do come true. Anything you want … can become a reality. I believe that sincerely. I say this not from something I read, it’s from something I lived,” he mentioned. “So to the younger generation, never give up. Keep thriving, even if it’s a bad day or people say you can’t do it, always believe in yourself.”