By Nana Kwame Bediako
The recent remarkable showing in Côte d’Ivoire has got the attention of numerous sports followers across the world, including FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, Arsene Wenger, who shared his thoughts on how impressed he was with the Africa Cup of Nations.
The Chief of Global Football Development for FIFA outlined his plans and vision to continue to help develop football in Africa. He noted that the organisation of the 34th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations was top-notch.
“There have been remarkable improvements since the last tournament. On the pitch, off the pitch, the organisation, the quality of the pitches, the level of organisation on the pitch—the commitment was intense.
Over the next six months to one year, our plan is to open more academies in Africa. We are now close to opening new ones in Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Ghana, and Zambia. By the end of 2026, we’ll have 75 academies all over the world. That means football education has moved forward, and that’s what we’re focusing on at the moment,” said Arsene Wenger.
He further added that he wants the game to be more competitive and of better quality, with a well-balanced system providing first-class football education to young talents coming up.
“It means just to make the ball your friend. Football is played with your feet, and that’s not completely natural; it has to be educated. To do it well, you have to start at a very, very young age. Once you have that basis, you have to prepare the players to adapt to every style of play.
But they can only do it if they have the right level of technical proficiency, and that’s what we want to do. Our academies for boys and girls start at age 12. At 17, they go into competitive football, but first, you have to prepare them,” Arsene Wenger mentioned.
