MT. JULIET, Tenn. (WTVF) — At Nashcards in Mt. Juliet, you'll find owner Chris Kelsey behind the counter and his son Max nearby. But when they're not playing cards, you'll find them in the stands of Geodis Park.
"What do you think, are we Nashville SC fans?" Chris asked Max. "Yeah, absolutely."
So when the opportunity came to buy tickets for the Leagues Cup championship game, Chris jumped at the chance.
"I went on Ticketmaster at ten in the morning, I waited in line, there was 2,000 plus people in front of me," he said.
It was an opportunity to make a new memory, especially after having just lived through a painful one.
Their apartment was destroyed in a blaze exactly one week before the big game.
"I woke up to people pounding on my door and that's when I realized that the building was on fire," said Chris.
Max's entire Nashville SC collection was gone.
"But for me, it was mostly losing his stuff," said Chris. "I was very emotional as a parent about the whole thing."
Fans of the team rallied, gifting Max with free gear to replace his lost possessions.
Then came the call from Nashville SC - Max was invited to walk on the field before the game.
"But we had no idea that it was going to be what it was last night," said Chris.
When the moment came, Max walked out of the tunnel and onto the field hand-in-hand with world-famous player Lionel Messi.
"He didn't even know until, what, you got assigned it or something right before? You have no idea who you're going out with, yup," said Chris looking at Max. "So I didn't know until I saw on the jumbo screen and like I said I just broke down and lost it."
Nashville lost in a dramatic round of penalty kicks, but the father and son left the game with a win.
"It just meant so much to me, like you know, just for people I've never met before to have that kind of kindness in their heart and try to make a new memory," Chris said.
