There was one key absentee as the USMNT defeated Jamaica 3-1 in overtime on Thursday night.
Leon Bailey, the Jamaican team's born-and-bred star, was left out of this month's CONCACAF Nations League squad by head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson.
Bailey has been in great form for Aston Villa this season, scoring eight goals and providing eight assists in 27 Premier League games. When news broke that he was not on the team, fans screamed in protest. Why leave out the best player in the country?
The answer lies in a team policy that required Bailey and forward Trivante Stewart to leave the hotel after curfew, shortly after Jamaica beat Canada 3-2 in Game 2 of the Nations League quarterfinals in Toronto in November. This happens when it is discovered that a violation has occurred. “There are a lot of agreements between the staff, coaches and players, but there is only one rule: you are not allowed to leave the hotel after 10pm,” Hallgrimsson said. “These players didn't even sleep in hotels.”
As a result, they were handed internal suspensions from the next international window, which they are currently in the midst of. Hallgrimsson added that once these suspensions are over, he will be considered for future player selection as usual.
“This is it,” Hallgrimsson said. “Both players took responsibility for their actions, apologized to us and the team, and accepted the apologies. We all make mistakes in life, even the worst mistakes. For all of us. Now that the case is resolved, we can move on.”
After Hallgrimsson confirmed his absence over the phone a few days before the squad was announced, Bailey traveled to Jamaica to spend time with friends and family during his international break.
While there on the eve of the Dallas Cowboys' Jamaica Nations League semi-final against the USMNT at AT&T Stadium, he listened to the Let's Be Honest podcast for 47 minutes, during which time he listened to the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) criticized. What he says is a lack of professionalism and poor equipment.
So much for “case solving”.
Bailey played a key role in Villa's 2023-24 season (Mark Atkins/Getty Images)
“People don't know, but most of the time I book my own flights to make sure I get to the national team,” Bailey said. “(JFF) is very unprofessional. They sent me flight details at 11pm for the next day's trip. Often I book flights, but the national team doesn't pay me. I can't remember the last time I received a dollar from the national team. All of my time with the national team has been so unprofessional. In ways I can't even imagine.
“When you show up, they don't even have equipment for you. There's no shirt. They tell us to find our own shorts. Sometimes they even offer women's shirts. Travel When it comes to, it's ridiculous. It's a lot. Whenever I'm there, they don't know how to operate. I don't expect them to know all this, but I He's no ordinary player.”
JFF disputes these claims as “inaccurate and contradictory.” According to the federation, Mr. Bailey has boarded flights booked by JFF at the last three international counters, and his seat was in business class on five of the six flights he took during this period.
Still, his claim that he's not a “normal player” deserves some scrutiny.
Bailey is arguably one of the most famous Jamaican-born footballers of all time, and perhaps the best-known Jamaican male international athlete of any type since sprinter Usain Bolt.
“When you go to certain places, you feel exposed,” Bailey said of his time on the national team. “Anyone can run up to me and put a camera in my face or whatever they want. No matter where we play, it's always Leon Bailey that they come to watch. Who do you think you would like to meet?
“I have never expressed these concerns because I try to get along with everyone. I am not that person. I can't feel it.
“The Jamaican national team doesn't do anything for me. They can't give me exposure. Even if I play for them, I won't get a call from Real Madrid. Everywhere in the world, people know Leon Bailey. I can't remember the last time I went somewhere and someone didn't know who I was. yeah.
“I don't ask for money. I just ask for a decent plane and a room for myself, but I don't get it. What am I here for? I'm exposing myself to injury.” ”
This is not the first time Bailey has announced an indefinite hiatus from international football.
“They always want me to play for Jamaica, but I've had personal problems with the association since I was 11 or 12 years old,” said Bailey, who plays for Bayer Leverkusen in the German Bundesliga. He spoke in 2017 when he was “Jamaica could have gotten me a long time ago, but there's a reason why I don't play for Jamaica. I'm focused on the club right now.”
Bailey previously said he had no intention of playing international football, but later returned (Omar Vega/Getty Images)
His complicated relationship with the JFF stems from his father and agent Craig Butler, one of the most influential and well-known figures in Jamaican football. Butler adopted Bailey and 22 other children, with whom she lived from the age of eight. Bailey was born in Cassava Peace, north of Jamaica's capital Kingston, an underprivileged area known for gang violence.
“My first wife kidnapped my 3-year-old son CJ and took him away after a bitter divorce,” Butler said. The Athletic “I didn’t know what to do, but one of my aunts told me to put the money in ‘God’s Bank.’ I asked her what she meant. Every time you see a boy, help him, and no matter where in the world CJ is, he can draw kindness from God's bank and you will be protected.'' So it started with Leon coming. ”
Before founding his own academy, Butler worked as a manager at the electronics company Toshiba. Alongside this, he worked on a passion project related to football. He ran a campaign to secure facilities for Jamaica to take part in the 1998 Men's World Cup in France, worked in academy football, and worked with future Villa and Brazil international striker Wesley, as well as Leicester He coached players including City and Nigeria midfielder Wilfred Ndidi.
After moving in with other children raised by Butler, Bailey was given the nickname “Chippy”. This was an affectionate name given to Bailey due to his obvious resemblance to Alvin from the movie Alvin and the Chipmunks. Along with Kyle Butler, Craig Butler's biological son, he began playing for the Phoenix All-Stars, an academy team formed in 2011.
Mr. Butler, who is currently the CEO and Chairman of Phoenix Academy, is committed to providing coaching to youth through soccer, teaching them the importance of “brotherhood, loyalty, moral and social responsibility” and developing Jamaican talent. launched.
At the same time, Butler was battling local and national federations. Prior to joining Phoenix, he was director of Stony Hill Football Academy, approximately 5 kilometers from Cassava Peace.
Starting in 2007, he engaged in negotiations with the Kingston and St Andrews Football Association (KSAFA) to allow Stony Hill to play in leagues and tournaments for the first time in over a decade. Once he was successful, local businessman Livingston Payne appeared and claimed to be the club's owner, not Butler. KSAFA advised them to lead the club together, and Butler took the association to court.
While Butler's case was ongoing, Rudolph Speed replaced Stewart Stevenson as KSAFA president. In some ways, Speed's involvement in soccer is similar to Butler's. Outside of football, he had a successful career as a lawyer and later became treasurer of the JFF. Like Butler, Speed is interested in developing young players and raising Jamaica's profile on the international stage.
Bailey (Craig Butler) signing in Phoenix
As a result of the appeal, Butler was suspended from coaching indefinitely and was forced to leave Stony Hill. While still suspended, he founded the now famous Phoenix Academy, which operates around Kingston, and while retaining the academy's staff, he recruited some of the most exciting prospects in 2010, including Bayley. and moved to Austria.
Butler arranged trials and meetings for players at more than 150 clubs in Europe, including Dutch giants Ajax, but Speed became one of the most influential figures in Jamaican football. Alongside his management role at JFF, he became head coach and chairman of Cavalier FC in 2016, winning the Jamaica Premier League in 2021.
Spide's power and influence within the JFF led to public allegations that Butler was interfering with the international paths of Phoenix players. For example, Bailey won the KSAFA Under-13, Under-15 and Under-17 Player of the Year awards at the age of 12, but was not called up to Jamaica's youth team. This period coincided with Butler's suspension, and the JFF wanted to distance itself from Phoenix in the aftermath of the trial.
Ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Butler met with England's FA executives to explore the possibility of Bailey playing for England. This prospect did not last long, as the UK-based Bailey's grandparents were Jamaican-born. Bailey eventually moved to Jamaica in 2019, earning 30 caps and scoring five goals.
Chelsea's 18-year-old star and Phoenix graduate Dujuan Richards has already made 10 appearances for the senior national team, and relations appeared to be improving slightly. But seemingly out of nowhere, Bailey is now back to his starting point: disillusioned and unopposed.
“From our perspective, it was all about this camp,” Hallgrimson said of Bailey's suspension after the USMNT loss. “I hope he plays for Jamaica for many years. At the moment he is Jamaica's hottest player so I'm hopeful, but it's up to him to decide.”
This may be optimistic, as the warming climate shows no signs of cooling.
On March 17, Mr. Speed's close ally Michael Ricketts won election to a second term as JFF president, defeating Mr. Butler-backed Raymond Anderson.
The day before the election, Butler wrote on Instagram: “What's the difference between humans and animals? Animals will never let the stupidest animal lead the pack.” In an accompanying caption, he called it “the saddest day. “This is the death of soccer in our country, or the beginning of a new hope.”
Political influences on his father's relationship with the JFF clouded Bailey's international career even before it began.
With three months left until their Copa America opener against Mexico, Jamaica wait to see if their greatest player of all time will play in their most important tournament since the 1998 World Cup.
even deeper
From a tough start in Jamaica to trekking across Europe with dreams – Leon Bailey's remarkable growth
(Top photo: Matthew Ashton – AMA/Getty Images)
