Feasibility Study on Football Academy Business in Nigeria: - Everything You Need to Know

Football academy is one of the thriving sports business in Nigeria today. Which means you can actually invest in the business, grow and make sustainable profits from the enterprise. This may surprise you, but football academy business is so lucrative in Nigeria that some foreign expatriate are already taking advantage of it. 

Football academies are not football clubs. Football clubs are entities that employ the services of players and coaches to help meet the goals and aspirations of the club owners. You may not know the difference, but operating a football club in Nigeria isn't financially profitable. I could tell you reasons, but it is a topic for another post. 

On the other hand, a Football academy is a football school that provides the services of training students who are aspiring to become professional players in the future. Like every school, the students pay admission, yearly or semester tuition fees, and other fees according to what specific academy offers the students. Fees such as hostel accommodation, feeding, medical, travels and tours... 

a) Market Size

Before the recent times, most parents do not allow their children to pursue a football career, because of the risk involved in playing the game and the limited opportunities available to footballers. It is often said that "football is not a career."

But with the opening of an almost unrestricted transfermarket operations to Europe and China as well as the kind of money thrown at professional players across the world these days. .. Monies that can liberate a family unit and deliver to them financial freedom from generation to generations yet unborn. Football has become a veritable means for wealth creation... Such wealth you could hardly amass from any other profession or business enterprise. More and more parents are now willing to invest in the training of any of their children interested in pursuing a football career. 

In a football crazy country like Nigeria, we have over 20 million aspiring youngsters who want to pursue a professional football career and will be needing to join an academy for training. So the market niche is so large. 

b) To Start an Academy - What You Need to Consider

All football academies are not the same, just the way all basic, colleges and universities schools are not the same. You should consider what kind of academy you want to start. There are kiddies academy, Discovery Academy and Elite academy. 

c) Type of Academies

1. Kiddies or Recreational Football Academies are usually a pool of 6 to about 10 years old kids that train under qualified developmental coaches. There's usually no tryout, any interested kid of both gender can be admitted for a fee.

This kind of academy train either once or twice a week after school or perhaps, at weekends or during holiday. The purpose is to exercise the kids, let them have fun and probably learn the fundermentals of the game - shooting, trapping, passing, positioning, ball control...

The recreational academies doesn't play competitive games. Kids are allow to play at their own pace, strength and only minor techniques are introduced to the kids at this level.

2. Discovery Football academies: are where students between 10 - 15 years old are trained between a period between 2 to 3 years to let the students discover themselves. Here, they are thought every aspect of the game. 

The students are exposed to play in different weather conditions, different pitches. They go for playing and trial tours as well as register for different tournaments. 

3. Elite Academies are for players who are ready to jump start a professional football career. They have been tested and found good. Here, they are thought and prepared for scouting programs and club trials. 

The students are continually exposed through trial tours, football festivals scouting programs and club trials. Before you are given admission into elite football academy, you must pass through very rigorous talent Assessment program. 

4 Franchise, affiliations, or your own brand: The next thing an investor should consider is to buy a franchise from a popular club in Europe and get them to establish an academy for you, similar to their own academy in Europe. The academy will bear the club's name and run the academy according to the club's established structure, system and culture. We have such academy with European club's franchise in Nigeria: FC Barcelona and Juventus Academy Lagos, then Real Madrid academy in Port Harcourt. 

Second, an investor may decide to choose it's own name and system of operation, but seek an affiliation with a popular club or academy abroad. Here in Nigeria, Papilo football academy Owerri is in affiliation with Arsenal FC and Iruka 24Carat, Abeokuta is in Affiliation with Paris Saint Germain (PSG) 

d) How to start an Academy - Registration process

CAC Registration: Choose a name and do a search if the name is available and qualified to be used in registration in the  Companies and Allied Matters for incorporation.

 State FA Affiliation: Then as your academy receives certificate of incorporation, then you can proceed to register an affiliation with your state Football Association (FA) 

e) Features: What Attract Parents and Students to A Football Academy? 

Parents and students are attracted to an academy that has the following:

1. Name, Association or Affiliation with any of the renowned clubs in Europe. For example: FC Bescola, Juventus Academy, Real Madrid Academy in Nigeria. 

2. Names and association with ex-International stars, eg: Papilo Nwankwo KANU Academy, Emmanuel Amunike Academy, Sia1 Samson Sissia Academy, Segun Odegbami Academy, Headmaster Mutiu Adepoju Academy... 

3. Academy own by government or a Company eg: Kwara State Football academy, Real Madrid Port Harcourt, Pepsi Football Academy, Abuja Football College... 

4. Academy that teaches other secondary educational curriculum, where students are thought football as well as learn english, maths, arts, commercial and science subjects eg: Pepsi Academy, Kwara Academy, Real Madrid Academy etc

5. Location: students prefer to register with an academy close to them. Especially players who are still in secondary school and need to come from home to train with an academy.

 

6. Qualified coaches, management, good pitches and training equipments eg: Great Olympics Academy, Real Madrid, Abuja Football college... 

7. Training & trial tours, Scouting & tournament Abroad eg: Mildas Academy, Buruji Academy, Great Olympics Academy, FC Bescola... 

8. Academy that have record of their ex-students who now play for big clubs abroad eg: Pepsi Academy, Great Achievers, Nath boys.... 

f) Financing A Football Academy

Apart from the initial investment of the entrepreneur, football academies pay itself and make profits from students fees and training compensation the academy receives when any of it's players is transferred to a professional club abroad. 

Most academies take yearly fees, and can admit between 30 to 100 students each year, depending on the facilities at their disposal. 

g) Marketing A Football Academy in Nigeria: Most youngsters today virtually live on the internet. They spend must of their time surfing some popular social media platform

Therefore, a football academy should have a strong online presence. Have their on website, webpages on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat... 

Advertise their program events on popular sports websites, blogs to create the necessary awareness and call to action: