STORE 
MY BEACH SOCCER 
The story of how Cristopher Campos turned his life around with the help of Beach Soccer
The social, physical and mental benefits of beach soccer are well known around the world and enforced by the story of Costarican Cristopher Campos.
His tale perhaps illustrates best what positive impact sport, specifically beach soccer, can have, with Campos having turned his life around after being introduced to it in the midst of personal difficulties and a battle with alcohol.
Following the loss of his older brothers in separate accidents and subsequent difficulties at home, alcohol and bad influences among his group friends threatened to send his life careering into a downwards spiral that would likely have culminated in a prison sentence.
“I was tempted by many things,” Campos reflected recently with the Liga de Futbol Playa (http://www.futbolplayacr.com) website. “Alcohol was my problem. Some people say that friendships do not affect your life but that’s a lie, they can ruin your life.”
Campos, 35, was introduced to beach soccer by a friend around a decade ago and has not looked back since.
Six goals in an impressive debut display while playing with Palmeiras acted as a catalyst for his introduction to the sport and Campos now plies his trade with LFP side Orion.
Keen to push the virtues of beach soccer further as a force for good, Campos also runs a youth league team in Goicoechea, and the midfielder says he owes much of the turnaround in his life to the sport.
“Beach soccer helps me to remove stress,” he added. “It helps me to share it with my family and to make friends, this league is very nice and we all get along very well.”
Away from the sand, Campos has a wife and five children as well as a job as a logistics consultant, ensuring his past difficulties lie a long way in the past.
“A true friend, Vladimir Rodriguez, took me to beach soccer,” Campos continued. “I remember I scored six goals in the first game and everyone was super happy because they had gone ten games without a victory.
“From that moment I fell in love with the sport.”
