England captain David Beckham has opened the first of his international football schools in south-east London. The David Beckham Academy was unveiled on the Greenwich peninsula yesterday as part of the multi-million pound redevelopment of the Millennium Dome site.
The Academy will open this summer and will have two full-size football pitches. Up to 15,000 youngsters aged between eight and 15 will be able to train there each year. Places will cost £250, but the soccer school will give away 10,000 free places this year to aspiring footballers.
Beckham said yesterday that it was not just about creating players, but about creating fun for youngsters. 'The Bobby Charlton Soccer school was so important for me because it gave me an opportunity to have fun and learn as a young kid. I always wanted to be a professional footballer and now I am in a position where I can create an academy of my own,' he said.
'People know I’ve earned a lot from football and now I want to give something back. It’s a non-profit scheme and I won’t make anything from it for a very long time. I’ve got no interest in going into management, it’s never appealed to me and it never will. The soccer school will become my life full-time after I’ve stopped playing,' he added.
Former Manchester United coach Eric Harrison, who will be in charge of the academy, said the youngsters would get 'fantastic coaching'.
Beckham is funding £2 million of the estimated £10 million cost of the project himself, and has clearly invested a lot of time in the project too. A sister academy is also set to open in Los Angeles later this year.
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