The secrets of the world's most successful football school
"Good God," murmurs the visiting scout from an English Premier League club, his hungry eyes fixed on the pitch and his jaw practically scraping the grass.
We're standing on the touchline of arguably the world's most successful football academy, at the end of a dirt track beside a rather murky lagoon on the scruffy outskirts of Abidjan. On the immaculate training ground, 22 barefoot 12-year-old boys are playing what even I can tell is the most dazzling, intelligent, agile football.
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"I expected good technique," says the English scout - who insists that I not mention the name of his extremely famous club. "What surprised me is how tactical they are - how aware of space. They're extraordinary," he says.
Nearby, Walter Ammann, the Swiss director of Asec Mimosa's Academy, is smiling serenely. "This is paradise, eh?" he says, looking around him.
Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Eboue, Salomon Kalou, Didier Zokora, Yaya Toure... the list of international stars to have emerged from Asec Mimosa's Academy is remarkable. But why should one club, and one country have had so much success?
Mr Ammann talks with enormous pride of how the academy nurtures the children. "We try to protect them, and to teach them responsibility, to help them to become men. Some of the boys come here and they can't even read or write."
But Mr Ammann then moves on to talk in more general terms about African "attitudes," how "African bodies are different," and about the rhythmic training that he's introduced at the beginning of every day.
Sven-Goran Eriksson, the former England manager, takes a similar line - up to a point. He's visiting the club during a flying visit to the country, having just agreed to take charge of Ivory Coast's World Cup team.
"I suppose this is the most successful academy in the world if you look at all the players who started their careers here," he says. "Africans are strong, physically, naturally strong and quick. Obviously there is a lot of talent in this country. But this academy is top quality, for Africa, and in the world."
The visiting scout takes a more prosaic view. He points out that the children at the academy train for at least four hours every day. "That's simply not possible in England. The sun shines all year round here. English kids finish school at three, then it's dark an hour later. They're lucky if they get a couple of hours football a week."
In keeping with the academy's protective instincts, I'm only allowed to interview one of the students. "Lots of journalists come here, and we don't want to turn the boys' heads," explains Mr Ammann.
Charles Silue, a 15-year-old striker shows me his locker, papered with pictures of football stars.
"I want to play for Barcelona, then for Manchester United," he says without a trace of cockiness. And it's Silue, composed, focused and phenomenally talented, who offers what seems to me the best explanation for Ivory Coast's reputation as the world's football factory.
"Many young African players just think about money," he says. "They focus on that. But here we're taught to think differently - to be responsible and concentrate on our objectives. Football is my passion. The money will follow."
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Hi Andrew,
There have been a few directors at Mimosas down the years. Can you shed any light on Walter Ammann's background - does he coach as well?
I have read in the past that Mimosas have students from all over West Africa. Is this true, or were all the ones you saw from Cote d'Ivoire?
Have any of the students moved to Abidjan specifically to join the academy?
Do the kids get a classroom education there as well?
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It's quite extraordinary that they do produce so many top class players but I think the reasons you have highlighted (for example the extra hours dedicated training and the almost fatherly guidance that it appears they are getting) coupled with the potential to elevate their families from comparative poverty to riches is motivation enough. I truly believe that in the more developed countries things are simply too easy and so a culture of laziness and a lack of aspiration is allowed to develop.
http://the-fa-premier-league.blogspot.com
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good blog andrew.just to ask, if ivory coast goes far in the world cup, will this academy claim a good chunk of their success?
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Not too many secrets shared in the article, the sun shines, train for four hours a day, focus on the player's all round development, players are strong and rhythmic training. The Mimosa Academy is producing some fabulous players but Tony Carr is probably running the best academy in the world as the following academy players are in the England squad: Johnson, Terry, Ferdinand, Carrick, Cole, Lampard, Defoe.
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@writtenbyfansforfans: well said
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Very interesting indeed! This football academy is a model not just for Africa, but far beyond. It proves what talent there is in Africa as far as football is concerned, and also that things can change for the better in all areas of life, following the principles of success that have been applied here. The rest of Africa should learn from this academy. I wouldn't be surprised if I heard this academy was the subject of an MBA or BA case study. It's probably about time.
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Just amazing what can be achieved with the right set up and attitude, the latter seems to got lost among many other things here in good old Europe.
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Africans are the best, look at English Premier League. It used to be very boring before the kings of Africa invaded it,it used to be dominated with players who would play long balls with no direction. Look at it now, its the best league in the world, thanks to African Players. Its the league which is full of skillful players, 90% of skillful Players in EPL are all Africans
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Many young African players just think about money," he says. "They focus on that. But here we're taught to think differently
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Adebayor must have missed class that day... or maybe they're taught to play good football for one season, then demand a huge pay raise and playing poorly thereafter!
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In reference to the comment by 'writtenbyfansforfans'
I don't think one of the reasons for their motivation is because they want to alleviate their families from poverty to riches. I don't know what you know about Africa but in most cases, most of those kids who go to those football academies come from wealthy and sometimes middle class families. It is unfair to attribute their dedication to poverty alleviation. You can find people with this kind of dedication everywhere in the world and it has nothing to do with poverty
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Your assertion that this school is the world's most successful is not accurate. It is true that it has graduated a reasonable amount of successful players, but your might want to check the statistics of Brasseries du Cameroon football academy as well as Kadji Sports Academy in Cameroon. You will be amazed by the number of successful football stars these two schools have produced, some of who are already retired.
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I'm a yank & wanted to comment on this article (also being an Arsenal fan).
MLB (baseball) signs kids at a young age from latin America, drafting a kid from the U.S. is much more expensive due to agents & such. Some baseball players have brought this topic up, but were quickly shouted down. Seems to me, West Africa is providing the same talent stream for European football clubs.
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Before we get all our mouths frothed about the prospect of Africans shinning in world football, or dominating, we should remember that the chance for a talented African player of having a professional footballing career anywhere in the world is probably 1 in a 10 million. African youth have as much odds landing a pro footbaling job as they do winning a lottery jackpot. For every successfully landed pro football job, there are hundreds of thousands of failures and dissappointments. The lives of some hightly talented African youth is laid to waste by handlers, who ruin their chances at a pro footballing career through incompetence sheer greed. The hopes of African youth should not be misplaced on what is more of a pipe dream than a real and attainable prospect. They should focus on their education and vocational development that can net them realistic job propects with long-term benefits.
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We need something like this in the US. We have the athleticism and the raw talent, but the academy system is just starting. Our players lack that clinical first touch and our sense of positioning is something to improve on. Hopefully we can see some results, but we need to emulate this academy in terms of success. Great article.
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I know this academy very well and it is fantastic. It is a paradise in the heart of Abidjan. The kids are working hard on the pitch but also at school.
This is the academy of the best ivorian club ASEC MIMOSAS, one of the top 5 African club.
The website of the club is [Unsuitable/Broken URL removed by Moderator]
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It's remarkable to me that no one (including Andrew Harding) questioned the assertions by both of the Europeans quoted in the article that Africans "naturally" have the physical tools or have "different" bodies. Statements like this have been made for years, either about Africans in general, West Africans in particular, or (in the US) Americans of African descent (which usually means West African in view of the pattern of slave trade). People have tried to verify the claims scientifically and haven't been able to. The same goes for the idea that East Africans are naturally better at distance running--not a strange thing to suspect given the dominance of Ethiopian, Kenyan, and Tanzanian runners when those countries rarely produce champions in other sports, but also without scientific support. These myths may seem benign, but they go hand-in-hand with other, less flattering stereotypes about Africans. They shouldn't go unchallenged.
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AmsterdamYank
Seconded. I don't believe such statements should go unchallenged. I can remember that at one time black people were thought to be unsuitable to play quarterback in American football. However I've often wondered why people of West African descent are often poor swimmers. Is it genetics, culture, environment or a mixture of all three?
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What the academy has done is remarkable and it should be applauded for it's success. I wish the blog was more detailed so we would have some idea how everything is done and if the boys also get education other than football. Well done to the academy, and I hope they keep on producing more talented players that will pleasure to watch.
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#17, I agree. I'm appalled at the racist stereotypes that's not challenged by the BBC.
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This may be unorthodox but I am hoping you will forward this to Andrew Harding. I am a South African author and a fan of Andrew's writing on Africa. You can verify who I am by googling my name. I have a South African football story to send Andrew that I think he'd love.
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Thanks for your comments. BCoxford - Most of the players at the Academy are from Ivory Coast. There are just a handful of boys from other parts of west Africa, including Senegal. Eighteen of the thirty players chosen by Sven-Goran Ericksson for his initial World Cup squad came through the Academy, so yes, backpassgoal, if Ivory Coast do well next month, ASEC can claim some credit. The students do regular lessons as well as football at the Academy - "training for the brain" is what the coaches call it.
Is it the best in the world? In Sven's eyes, yes, but I guess that's a hard one to nail down.
As for Mr. Ammann's comments about "African" stereotypes. I share your concerns, AmsterdamYank, and hoped they were implicit in my blog.
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If you're interested in a bit more context, I've just written something about Ivory Coast for the BBC's radio programme, From Our Own Correspondent. You can listen to it, but not read it, here...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00sdc12#p007yx7l
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Thanks for the feedback Andrew.
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It may not be the best or whatever but I think its good to see that there is an academy like this in Ivory Coast and it would be good if similar academies are set up in other parts of Africa to nurture the emerging talent that sometimes goes to waste.
That the academy can produce so many players who are in the national team shows that its working.
Full time analysis
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#3 @writtenbyfansforfans
Totally ignorant observation, am afraid. Sadly, those comments are not untypical of most in western mainstream media, who feel the urge to talk about things they know little about. Africa is changing for the better, and the more that success stories such as these can be replicated around the continent, the faster it will change.
Thanks Andrew Harding for highlighting such positive developments in Africa. We could certainly do with more of such news from the 'motherland'.
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AmsterdamYank & Andrew
I believe that Mr. Amman's comments were well intended but probably delivered in such a way that it can be perceived as stereotyping and being slightly racist. However, look past race and think genetics, each country does indeed have slightly different physical profiles. For example, take the mean height of the male population in the Philippines and compare that to the mean height of the male population in Holland. There would be a significant difference. And again its not stereotyping or racist, its genetics.
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Sorry but Boca Juniors have the best academy in the world, there's no doubt that. They have produced about 50 players within the last 12 years, starting from local villages these kids have nothing in thier futures, coming from poor backgrounds. Boca's academy is the South American's version of the Ajax academy who have the one of the best in Europe.
Most of Boca's players start of in the academy, infact an African team has never won a world cup.
Shame on you BBC, typical lack of knowledege.
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Good point VillasTommyJohnson . The way people cry racism these days is unbelievable
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