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The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has endorsed Singapore’s Lion City Sailors Football Academy (LCSFA) as a two-star academy under the acclaimed AFC Elite Youth Scheme.
After being bestowed a one-star membership in 2020, the academy has remained resolute in its ambition to constantly enhance the standards of its youth development programmes.
The LCSFA’s remarkable facilities and coaching structure, along with the club’s long-term development plans, left a lasting impression on the AFC Youth Panel assessors during their on-site visit earlier this year.
The experts were particularly impressed by the high level of professionalism among the managerial staff, coupled with the concerted efforts towards aligning the youth academy’s goals with the first team’s objectives.
Under the guidance of Technical Director Luka Lalic, LCSFA has developed a robust coaching structure that focuses on nurturing the talent of youth players to enable a seamless transition into the club’s senior team.
Boasting some of the finest facilities in the football ecosystem of the island nation, the LCSFA features designated dressing rooms for academy players, a physiotherapy centre, a video analysis room, recreational areas, a fully-equipped gymnasium, and three football fields (two artificial and one hybrid grass), which caters to the needs of grassroots, youth and senior team players.
Moreover, the academy places an emphasis on the holistic development of the young players and provides a separate study room for them to remain on their educational journey.
Additionally, the assessors were reassured to note the strong financial support that the LCSFA receives from their stakeholders, enabling the institution to execute its development programme effectively, which includes annual training camps in Europe for its youth teams that allow them to gain valuable experience.
LCS Chairperson Forrest Li said, “We’re proud to be among an elite group who have been awarded a two-star endorsement. This is a testament to the hard work that our academy has put in over the past few years to ensure professionalism in all areas, from having specialist staff for every age-group to establishing a clear pipeline from the academy to the senior team.”
“We’re humbled by this acknowledgement, and it only strengthens our determination to nurture the next generation of football stars in Singapore. We will continue to work extremely hard to develop the infrastructure and capabilities needed to attain the three-star membership in the coming years.”
