KOCHI: KBFC Young Blasters Sporthood Academy, the academy venture of Kerala Blasters FC, the football club that represents the state in the Hero Indian Super League, has crossed 3,000 admissions.
This is the most admissions ever achieved by a football academy in Kerala. The Young Blasters Sporthood Academy (YBSA) in collaboration with Sporthood, was started in 2019. Today, YBSA has more than 80 centers in 14 districts across the state.
The vision of YBSA is to build the capacity to train 100,000 children across 1,000 grassroots centers in the next 5 years. This year (2022), they are setting up 150 grassroots coaching academies in partnership with schools and football turfs across all 14 districts in the state.
The Young Blasters Sporthood Academy provides scholarships for highly talented kids as well as those who may not be able to afford the coaching fees. These scholarships vary from a 25% to 100% fee waiver. Merit-based scholarships are given out to the most gifted kids while means-based scholarships are awarded based on annual income.
“Our vision is to build a system that will make sure that all level players are donning the yellow jersey that is being scouted from the state of Kerala itself,” said Rahul Antony Thomas, CEO, Sporthood.
“KBFC has always been committed to the state and the footballing talent it has. This structure was created to ensure that the very best talent from across Kerala can be nurtured from an early age to ensure their success. We are excited to be on this journey with Sporthood and look forward to crossing many more milestones together,” Nikhil Bharadwaj, Whole Time director, Kerala Blasters FC, said.
