- Brownsburg senior Arian Reyes will play for Panama in the U-17 World Cup in November. He hopes to represent the senior team in a future World Cup.
- Playing for the national team has helped Reyes develop leadership skills that he brings back to his high school team.
- Reyes is determined to repay his family for their sacrifices and uses that as motivation for his soccer journey.
INDIANAPOLIS — Arian Reyes taps his right foot on the chair’s spindle. Panama has eight minutes of regular time to equalize.
Belief is wearing thin on this Tuesday evening. For the Brownsburg soccer star and the other 15 people sitting in the 350-square-foot living room inside his Indianapolis home.
The clock ticks. Croatia leads 1-0 in this 2026 FIFA World Cup Group L matchup. Reyes’ claim in the 67th minute that the Los Canaleros were “in this thing” is looking less true.
The multitude of family and friends in No. 4 Panama jerseys could only utter, “Adios Mio,” as their country’s World Cup hopes slipped away.
Their next hope is the name on the back of their jersey: Reyes. The Brownsburg senior will play for Panama in the U-17 World Cup in November. Today, he’s a fan of the senior team, which is on the brink of losing their chance to advance to the round of 32.
It's the 88th minute. Both of Reyes’ feet are now on the brown chair. Tap. Tap. Tap. The speed at which his grey Under Armour sneakers collide with the footrest increases.
Three minutes later, Reyes’ feet are on the ground, doing the same. Panama forward Tomas Rodriguez attacks, charging toward the box.
“Go for it,” Reyes implores, the 550-mile separation between his 85-inch TV and BMO Field in Toronto too short a distance to dissuade encouragement.
Rodriguez advances before a Croatian defender fouls him 20 yards away from the goal.
The aroma of Aunt Rosie’s homemade beef empanadas fills the room as much as the anxiety surrounding the free kick.
A disruption occurs. At least for the Panama U-17 defender. Reyes’ mother, Michelle, born and raised in Panama, calls her only son and oldest child to the kitchen and hands him a plate covered with foil. The moment on TV was monumental. But serving others is paramount.
The unused beef and a few tortillas are for Reyes’ close friend and former teammate at Brownsburg, Teka Webb, who is leaning over with his fist on his cheek, elbow on his hip and his eyes glued to the TV.
Reyes makes it back to his seat in time for the free kick. Defender Amir Murillo kicks it high and wide right, wasting Panama’s last opportunity at goal.
The group utters a collective sigh of disappointment, a stark contrast to the Panama chants that broke out just before the start of the game. Three minutes later, full time.
There's not much Reyes can do now. But in four years, he hopes that'll change. He’ll have the family support and national-team experience needed to achieve his goal of representing Panama at a World Cup.
“What keeps me motivated is watching games on TV and seeing my name already on the back of my jersey,” Reyes said. “Maybe one day I'll be in the World Cup with Panama and go far, making history. That's what I'd love to do.”
A supportive team made Reyes’ World Cup dream a possibility
Webb arrived 33 minutes into the game, repping a black No. 4 Panama jersey.
While the first half was in extra time, Webb walked to the dining room adjacent to the living room and kitchen. There stood a white rectangular table, dressed with a Panama flag on one half and a Mexican flag on the other, to honor Arian’s dad, Xabi Reyes.
On it, rests an abundance of Arian’s’ soccer memorabilia, youth soccer awards and medals, including the Olympic bronze medal he won with the Panama U-17 team in May.
“You have way more than I do,” an awestruck Webb said with a smile.
Webb, a Grand Canyon soccer commit met Reyes before the start of the 2025-2026 season, when Reyes transferred from Pike.
Reyes said Webb was “big” in his adjustment to Brownsburg. Webb said some players initially didn't like Reyes because of the aggression he played with.
Yet, Webb embraced Reyes. Spoke with him while some withdrew. As Webb discusses his relationship with Reyes, he's summoned by his friend to the couch for a group photo.
There's no man left behind in this house, proof the wall sign in their living room that reads “FAMILY” isn't performative.
Reyes calls out again. Webb delays. But it's OK. Aunt Rosie is also late. She's rolling the dough for the empanadas.
Reyes wants Webb in this family picture. Because where some saw aggression, Webb saw Reyes as a leader and someone who “always had a fire to go beyond what others do.”
“I've become more of a people person since joining Brownsburg,” Reyes said. “I never thought I'd become who I am today.”
Reyes’ evolving personality helps him when he's far away from his family and with his Panama teammates. It's easier for him to hop on the PlayStation and play FIFA with his peers. Initiating hangouts and engaging with younger players at Brownsburg rejuvenates Reyes.
“Since he has gone and played with the national team, he has become a different player,” Brownsburg coach Sean McGrath said. “Now he understands it's my time to lead. He has a good balance of recognizing that not everybody is at the same level as the Panama team, so how can I balance that to make them better while still maintaining that intensity to bring to the game?”
McGrath called Reyes a “360 player” who can play in the midfield and praised Reyes for his “unique creativity off the ball.”
McGrath played Reyes at left back last season. The 17-year-old is a natural right back. The new position allowed Reyes to improve his use of both feet, a skill that “made it easier” for the Panama team to call him up in December 2025.
A sacrificial family made Reyes aware he could even have a World Dream
Reyes was confused when he noticed his father booking flights during their drive to Warsaw on Christmas Eve night to visit family. Reyes quickly moved on, questioning little. Once midnight arrived, it was time to open gifts. But Michele had a family announcement.
”I thought we were having another kid,” Arian recalled.
Michele announced Reyes earned a call-up to the U-17 Panama team.
“My jaw just dropped,” Reyes said.
For Michele, it was confirmation of what she sensed long ago when she and Xabi put Arian in soccer at 3 years old.
“I felt it in my heart and always thought he’d get Panama residency because he played on the team,” Michele said.
Michele spent her weekends traveling with Arian from game to game while her husband toiled as a truck driver to pay for soccer.
“My mom spent extra hours making trips, and my dad was always working overtime, so why wouldn't I do the same?” Arian said.
At times, Arian battles with a self-imposed pressure to make his parents happy. He admitted his position comes with a “high standard” that is “sometimes stressful.”
“Without them, I wouldn't be here,” Arian said. “All the hard work I put in and the work ethic I have come from them. They mean the world and I want to prove them well.”
‘Hopefully one day I'll get my chance’
Xabi sits on the arm of the brown cotton couch and leans his body against the wall corner intersecting the kitchen and living room about 15 minutes before the first whistle. Michele and Arian’s little sister, Alison, stands nearby, looking at Arian as he concludes his conversation.
Who do you get your aggression from?
“It’s half,” Arian says after a brief pause as both parents look at him with a grin.
He pauses for eight more seconds.
“Maybe my dad,” Arian concedes.
The night before, Xabi warned Arian not to play too hard during a pickup game. Arian didn't listen. But Xabi’s gripe has minimal ground. Xabi’s friends often remind him he played the same way.
Arian learned how to communicate with others from playing with his father. Xabi had a gift for connecting with people from different cultures, which influenced Arian’s desire to become a social worker if soccer didn’t work out.
With immigrant parents, Arian was raised to care for others, work hard and practice humility. He didn't share the news about the Panama call-up for two weeks.
“I just had to get to work,” Arian said.
There are about 10 minutes until kick-off. Alison is sorting crackers in a tray, then goes to the table and points to her favorite medal. It's the Olympic bronze.
“Not everyone can say they have that,” Arian said.
Xabi is ready to discuss his son’s journey.
“It's hard to believe,” Xabi says with his leg crossed and eyes glued to the TV as Panama warms up. His face turns red, but the tears don't come. Arian’s source of aggression.
In the opening minutes of his conversation, Xabi is interrupted.
Arian’s little cousin enters through the front door, waving a Panama flag while perched on her father’s shoulders. About eight family members follow behind, chanting “Panama” five minutes before kick-off.
This is what Arian misses when he's away with the national team. The FIFA matches with his Panama teammates can’t compare with his conversations with his cousins. The random moments when his sister jumps into his arms are irreplaceable. Alison reminds Arian he’s a role model and has to “act right.” He tried to get Alison into soccer. But her heart is with gymnastics.
“But that's the life of soccer if I want to be a pro soccer player,” Arian says. “I think about them and know I gotta work on my job.”
Jose Toledo makes his way to his little cousin’s table of accolades. “Holy cow,” he says before taking his seat on the couch. Two family members sit between him and Arian, who is at the end of the couch nearest to the front door.
Jose is wearing a red Bass Pro Shops hat. Rosie hands him a black hat with “Panama” on it in white lettering.
Alison is blowing a red, white and blue vuvuzela and joins Arian on the couch. Every monotone note reminds her big brother of the U-17 World Cup qualifying games in February.
“This means France,” Alison says of the horn. The Frenchmen are the favorites to win the tournament.
But on this evening, those colors mean Panama. That's the only thing being supported today. Along with Michelob Ultra’s.
Roughly a dozen family members have on his jersey -- some in red, others in black. Xabi is wearing blue and white.
Arian sticks out. His teal Panama jersey is the lone one in the room. But it's also his presence. He's still a little quieter than his other family members, but they all gravitate to him.
“I'm glad I'm the first to do it,” Arian says as he scans the room and sees his name during the opening five minutes of the game. “But I have a long way to go. Hopefully, if I keep going, I can have my family come to the stadiums.”
A response that tempers expectation, but conveys ambition and invokes humility.
He's excited. Grateful. But realistic, yet determined.
He wants to excel at the U-17 World Cup in November, an opportunity he knows “not many people get.”
Arian said he's “still figuring out how to find an identity” outside of soccer. But soccer seems to expose Arian as a family man, one inspired to honor his parent’s sacrifice through sport.
Arian’s 16-year-old cousin Mia Toledo is on the adjacent couch about six feet away. Mia shifts her focus from the TV and turns toward her cousin.
“Will I see you there in the next couple of years?” Mia asks with a smile.
Arian pops a subtle smirk. He's down to earth, but the thought of playing at soccer's pinnacle entices.
“Probably,” he says.
Joshua Heron is an enterprise and Fever reporter. Follow him on Twitter at @HeronReports
Source: The Indianapolis Star
