Barcelona Football Club To Set Up Football Academy In Lagos

Spanish football club, FC Barcelona, have taken the decision to set up a football academy in Lagos.
Pau Vilanova Vila Abadal, director of business and member of the FC Barcelona board, announced the decision during his visit to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, governor of the state, on Monday. Vila-Abadal said that the club decided to set up its academy in Lagos due to the state’s impressive population, and the opportunity to share the philosophy of the team with young footballers in the state.
Speaking at the Lagos house, Alausa, as he received senior management staff of the football club, Ambode said:
“This visit by FC Barcelona is coming at a point where I believe strongly that we have nothing else to say than to say we are committed to this partnership because we know it will give us the first FCBEscola in Africa.
“I was made to understand that this is the first of its kind in Africa, and so Lagos is priding itself as a major receptor of the next academy to be established in Africa.”
He added that the clubs aim is to raise excellent players for Nigeria, focusing on the core values of the club: effort, team work, humility and respect.

La Masia (pictured above), the club’s training facilities and youth academy in Barcelona, is one of the most popular football academies in the world. In 2010, it achieved the record of becoming the first youth academy to have trained all three Ballon d’Or finalists in a single year, with Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez.

Photo Credit: ESPN