SAFA launch Clive Barker Academy to focus on football education

The landmark innovation, named in honour of the late, great former Africa Cup of Nations-winning Bafana Bafana coach, will run concurrently with traditional coaching courses but offer specialised modules such as performance and data analysis, as well as punditry.

SAFA technical director Walter Steenbok explains.

"It's important that we break the education part into two components – one component would be traditional [coaching] courses, and then the other one would be SAFA Clive Barker Academy," explained Steenbok.

"So, the Clive Barker Academy will deal with all specialised courses that you can think of – [such as] a technical director course, courses for career transition programs for ex-players, also courses for active players - coaching, performance, data analysis.

"There will also be courses that will deal with match analysis for TV pundits [because] we see a lot of our ex-players on TV, and they need training, so the Clive Barker Academy will really cover a whole lot of things."

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Steenbok also noted that the location of the Clive Barker Academy not fixed as the services will be offered throughout the country, while the model itself is adapted from similar initiatives in Europe.

"Be rest assured, we are not building a SAFA technical centre. It's an innovative way where we get into the modern space," he elaborated.

"You have coaches in the ABC Motsepe League and the NFD [Motsepe Foundation Championship] who also sometimes have to be a physical trainer... You have a team manager who needs to understand what is required to be team manager.

"So this is a segment that has been neglected in South African football, most probably in Africa also. There are already models in Belgium, in the FA in England. So, it really shows a lot of intense research from our side."

As earlier reported by sabcsport.com, it was also confirmed that, following a six-year hiatus, the CAF A & B licence courses will return to South African shores, with the first program running from 13-23 November.

READ: CAF A license courses finally return to South Africa