According to the KickOff.com website, the Liverpool FC International Football Academy will be the club's first coaching programme in South Africa and aims to provide opportunities for young players and coaches to develop and have a positive impact on the game in the country.
These soccer schools will seek to improve the football skills of five to 13-year-olds across the country and will help students hone technical, tactical, physical and social aspects of the game through age-specific drills.
"The idea of international Academy is to provide one thing which is to give our boys an opportunity. On 13 November 2013, KwaZulu-Natal provincial government took to the cabinet to financially support the construction of an International Training Centre with Hoy Park Football Academy, which is planned to become a flagship of youth for South Africa and will offer the country a lasting legacy to the people of eThekwini Municipality and the province of KwaZulu-Natal," said Carlos Catalino, the Hoy Park Sport project manager.
Danny White, the head of International Academies at Liverpool, added that former and present players will come to the country, which will be a huge encouragement for the students.
"We have a fun way to spread around and we will bring players of the past
and present like Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard, Raheem Sterling and so forth to
share their knowledge. Our main objective is to provide an opportunity for
everyone and also the country at large to move as one," White said.
"The Liverpool way is based on the team's four core family values:
Ambition, Commitment, Dignity and Unity.
"Players will be developed using the Academy programme that ensures that
different age groups are trained and help the students hone technical,
tactical, physical and social aspects of the game."