Philosophy, Functionality and Architecture – with these
three keywords as a focus and in mind
Manchester City Football Club have created a Football Academy that is now
viewed as one of the best resourced in the world.
A global leading sports infrastructure that is now
the bedrock for the club to be successful for the future.
The vision for the club, when we started this programme
of investing in infrastructure here in Manchester, was truly
to build a world-class facility for the future. A world-class
football training academy that takes into account
the best experiences around the world.
16.5 pitches, one entire inside pitch, three gyms, treatment areas
canteens with healthy food and offices for all
the staff members. Everything is in one place.
The challenge of this project was to frame it.
What is it, what are we trying to achieve and how do we go about building
infrastructure, hardware that not only captures who we are
as an organization and celebrates it and makes it work
and thrive every day, but how do we also do that in a way
that creates a successful, winning organization?
We spent two years researching the world’s best sporting
training facilities – not just in soccer but in every sport
and we developed a level of understanding an insight into
what made truly great sports organization successful.
But not just in the sporting context. The club also
understood what their responsibilities are towards the local area
and the community around the campus.
We’ve tried to work with local people to build a facility by the community
for the community and with the community.
The ambition for the football club was to make sure that
we've got a stadium and its training ground that are wholly sustainable
provided facilities for our players and our young people
that give them every opportunity to become the best
players we can produce but also good all-rounded people
that can deliver into the community.
More than 450 players train every week on the 80-acre campus.
The players couldn’t be more satisfied with what they have on offer.
The facilities of Manchester City Football Club are unbelievable.
I think for a professional footballer, this is what you dream of
being able to play on nice pitches, to be able to have
the best facilities available to improve yourself as a player.
So I really feel that all these facilities do benefit
in our preparation day to day.
Training where the professional footballers train is obviously
like a dream come true. It doesn’t matter what level you play at
it feels like we are all one team. It makes me feel good on the pitch
it makes me work harder and it makes me progress.
This is spectacular. This is almost a city inside a city.
It's a state of the art facility and many other
professional teams don't have the luxury of having this.
It's definitely a top notch.
Let’s say it’s my home away from home. If I’m not
with my family, this is where I feel most comfortable.
That’s where I feel most at ease and that’s you know
another important fact of whichever facility you are
going to be spending your time, it needs to feel like
it somehow belongs to you.
Manchester City Football Club has transformed the area
around the campus from an industrial contaminated area
to a new community hub that provides development opportunities
education, health and success.
This is part of our DNA. This goes back to when this football club started
It was very much linked to the community, and
for all the right reasons then and for all the right reasons now
we are trying to improve the lives of the people
in Manchester but we’re also trying to improve what is
happening with our young footballers. We want to create
better footballers but better people.
All you have to do is spend an afternoon here walking around
and you are watching community participation within the facility
you are seeing our women's team
training
you are seeing Academy and Youth teams competing
and you are seeing the first team walking around, within the same complex
Very inspirational and a really an incredible
facility overall.
Manchester City Football Academy is a unique project that sets
a new benchmark in football.
