La Liga club FC Barcelona will unveil Charlotte, N.C., as the location of its second football academy in the U.S. during a press conference at the Charlotte Convention Center on Thursday. The Spanish club, in collaboration with int'l sports management agency ISL Futbol, will offer an after-school program that teaches Barcelona’s football philosophy to youth players in the region. Officially licensed coaches from the club will oversee the program, which is targeted at boys and girls ages 6-16. The average cost of the program will be around $2,000 per year, according to ISL Futbol co-Founder & Chair Mac Lackey. A maximum of 432 players will be able to participate in the academy, called FCBEscola, after open tryouts in the various age groups. The selected players will practice several days a week at the Matthews Sportsplex just outside of Charlotte starting this September. They will also participate in tournaments and compete against local teams as part of the 10-month program. The goal of the academy is to provide talented players with the necessary tools to receive a college scholarship, have a pro career or, ultimately, play for FC Barcelona. ISL Futbol has been working with the club since its creation in ’13, and is currently Barça’s largest U.S. partner in terms of player development programs. ISL Futbol has been organizing FC Barcelona summer camps across U.S. cities, including Washington, Indianapolis and St. Louis, over the past several years, and will continue to do so. The only other FCBEscola in the U.S. is based in Florida and run by Kaptiva Sports. The new Charlotte academy is the next step in the agency's relationship with the club, said Lackey, with plans for a total of 15 ISL Futbol-organized FCBEscola programs across the U.S. over the next five years. “We try to create a formula here in Charlotte that we can expand to other cities in North America,” said ISL Futbol co-Founder & Head of New Ventures Marc Segarra, whose grandfather is legendary Barcelona captain Joan Segarra.
LOCAL SUPPORT: Lackey said the decision to launch the expansion program in Charlotte is based on convenience -- ISL Futbol has an office in the city -- and local support. “Here in Charlotte, we’ve received support for the project from the CRVA [Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority] and the city itself,” he said. “They’ve also helped us to connect with the local business community.” In addition to securing regional partners to help underwrite the project, the agency already has relationships with official Barcelona sponsors Nike and Audi, which will both be involved in its academies. Charlotte will be Barcelona's 21st academy worldwide. ISL Futbol’s vision for its U.S.-based academies is to become part of the regional U.S. football landscape in the various markets and form partnerships with local clubs, Lackey said. This could also mean merging or acquiring clubs in certain markets, though nothing has been finalized, he added. ISL Futbol plans to announce three additional U.S. markets for its FCBEscola program in ’17. Another goal of the agency, Lackey said, is bringing Barcelona's first team to Charlotte. Talks between city officials and team execs have already taken place. "Matter of time I imgine," he said.
EXPANSION PLANS: The agency currently has 17 employees across two its global offices in Barcelona and Charlotte. Lackey said that expansion seems inevitable if the company grows at the rate it has, but no decisions have been made. “We are very committed to Barcelona and there are certain things that we just outright have and will continue to turn down because it is a conflict,” he said. “At this point the core activities that we are doing are really Barcelona-focused.” While the company’s focus is on its relationship with FC Barcelona, its ambition is to become a global player in world football and beyond, Segarra said. ISL Futbol is also representing Barça's league rival Real Sociedad and counts Gatorade and Soccer.com to its list of clients.
