The major GSM
operators in Nigeria are not left out in the race to raise and promote young
football talents to stardom as each of the operators has an academy that sees
to the training of young footballers.
One of such
initiatives, the Glo Soccer Academy by Globacom modeled to explore West African
countries with the sole aim of discovering football talents and ushering them
to international level.
The academy also
serves as a once-in-a-lifetime chance for talented young footballers to
commence their career in professional football.
After the region’s
exploration, a total of 30 talents are selected for the academy where they
would undergo a one-month intensive training by celebrity coaches.
The selected young
footballer will during the course of the one month training compete to be part
of the final 16 to play at the Manchester United Summer camp whereas one of the
16 finalists also wins the ultimate price for the Most Valuable Player (MVP), a
N5 million cash prize while the remaining 15 will go home with N1 million each.
Some of the
celebrity coaches include the 3rd best African player of 1979, Segun Odegbami,
a former Nigerian goalkeeper, Zion Ogunfeyimi, a former Ajax Amsterdam in
Holland player in Holland, Tijani Babaginda, a former Ghanaian International
footballer, Anthony Baffoe and Victor Ikpeba who is the Soccer Academy’s Team
Manager.
Airtel’s youth
football initiative, the Airtel Rising Stars was conceived with the aim of
discovering and nurturing young soccer talents from the grassroots onto an
international stage.
The Airtel Rising
Stars is targeted at boys and girls within the ages of 13 and 17 who are
enncouraged to form teams and register at selected Airtel shops afterwhich they
would be invited for the tournament upon qualification.
Airtel Rising
Stars runs in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Sierra
Leone, Burkina Faso, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, DRC, Niger, Madagascar and Gabon.
Each of the
participating country present top 3 - 6 players for a one-week football clinic
by professional football coaching staff, the coaching is been run by Manchester
United Soccer Schools in England.
At the end of the
training, a finalist of 52 in number will get handy tips and nuances from
Manchester United Football Legend and former England football captain Bryan
Robson.
The 52 shortlisted
players for the camp will also be put through their paces by four Manchester
United coaches, Michael McClean, Mick Bennett, Andrew Cunningham and Kevin
O’Connell. Airtel in each of the African countries have different cash prize
for the team that emerged the best.
Another of the
soccer initiatives in the telecommunications sector, the MTN Football Scholar
has a new dimension putting football and academics together. It is targeted at
best athletes and soccer players who must also be sound academically.
The selected
candidates are awarded scholarship to American universities. Candidates write
SAT examinations to prepare them academically and are trained under top
Nigerian national team personnel and coaches from American Soccer academies.
The MTN Football
Scholar is open to students aged 16 to 20 who must have gotten a senior school
certificate examination certificate with a minimum of last Credit.
MTN uses the
medium to connect positive dreams and aspirations of Nigerian youths for
international exposure in Soccer and education.
After
registration, MTN Football Soccer conducts audition where best students would
be selected for a one-month intensive football and academic training.
The training
prepares participants for SAT and TOEFL examinations, those that pass the
examination compete at a final football competition where international soccer
scouts select top winners.
Although, Etisalt,
as at the time of filing this report doesn’t have soccer academy but adopted
Football Club of Barcelona as its European team partner.
The football academies of these operators would
not doubt improve the standard of Nigerian footballers in few years to come as
some of the operators’ groomed football talents might end up in the national
team.
Yinka Awosanya
... Making SENSE of digital revolution!
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