By Mark Baber
July 10 – FC Barcelona, currently serving a one-year transfer ban for breaking FIFA’s child protection rules, have been blocked by the Danish Football Federation (DBU) from realising their ambition to set up an academy in Denmark.
Last year Barcelona had announced they were going to open an academy in Ballerup just outside Copenhagen, similar to those that the club has set up in other countries, but the scheme quickly ran into opposition with the DBU saying that the rules regarding the protection of underage players were not being followed and that the academy would also be detrimental to Danish clubs. The DBU was particularly opposed to Barcelona’s idea of taking on children as young as six.
Unfortunately for Barcelona, under UEFA rules they need permission from the host country’s football federation before going ahead – and this has been withheld.
A meeting between UEFA representatives, Barcelona and the DBU ended with a joint declaration and all parties attempting to smooth over relations. Steen Jørgensen, spokesman for the Danish federation, said: “We have held a good and constructive debate with Barcelona and have reached the conclusion that FCBEscola will not open the planned academy.”
However, according to Jørgensen the DBU and Barcelona would be looking at organising “common football activities in the near future.”
Despite multiple violations of the FIFA regulations preventing children being split up from their families and trained abroad, the punishment imposed has been completely ineffective due to Barcelona’s appeals which have given the time to ensure the ban does not effect the strength of their squad.
On their web site Barcelona claim the expansion of their “FCB Escola” which currently includes “14 football schools based in more than 50 countries around the world, is “unstoppable.”
According to Barcelona: “The FCB Escolas work with a very clear model to achieve an equally clear objective, a unique model which is based on the creative attacking philosophy favoured from the Club’s Academy teams all the way up to the first team.
“FCBEscola’s training involves the transmission of Club values such as humility, hard work, ambition and team work. The aim is to help the youngsters improve their football skills and also to promote the living together of people from different cultures, nationalities and philosophies who all share a passion for football and Barça.”
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