Football
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Sports Schools
FOOTBALL SCHOOL
Anyone can kick a ball. Knowing where to kick it is another job.
Free Athlete AssessmentAbout the Programme
The Football School is Başarı Spor Akademisi’s football programme for children aged six and over. Delivered at the academy’s training camp in age-grouped sessions, it runs from ball mastery through to understanding the game.
Football is the most played and least taught sport in Turkey. Most children arrive having learned in the street, bringing settled habits with them: using only their strong foot, dribbling with their head down, looking for an individual solution instead of a pass. The programme’s first job is not to demolish those habits but to put a second option alongside them.
So weak-foot use is compulsory in sessions, and touches are limited in small-sided games. A child forced to play in three touches learns to look for the pass before receiving — the hardest and most valuable skill in the sport. Technique is trained inside the game, under the rules of the game.
In younger groups nobody is assigned a position. Every child plays in defence, in midfield and in goal. Declaring an eight-year-old a centre-back closes the door on abilities that have not surfaced yet. Position preference emerges later, from the child’s own inclination, once they know the whole game.
Training Content
Technique, game understanding and physical development, combined through small-sided games.
- Ball mastery: control with both feet, dribbling, running with the head up
- Passing and first touch: directed control, short and long passing technique
- Finishing: inside-foot, laced and near-post variations
- Defensive fundamentals: timing the press, body position, winning the ball
- Game understanding: creating space, offering support, using the width
- Physical development: agility, speed and age-appropriate strength
- Small-sided games: touch-limited, rule-conditioned play
Who Can Join?
- Children aged six and over, including those who have never played at a club
- Club players who want to develop individual technique
- Children who need street-learned habits corrected
- Training organised into age groups
- Participants in suitable health
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the right age to start football?
Six is the age at which a child can control the ball and follow simple rules. Earlier than that, general coordination work is more productive than football-specific technique. Between six and nine the focus should be entirely on ball mastery — tactics are premature at that age.
My child only uses their right foot. Can that be fixed?
Yes, but it needs early intervention. Parts of our sessions are played with the weak foot only. That is frustrating in the first weeks and error rates rise, which is normal. After about twelve the habit becomes markedly harder to change, so the earlier the better.
They already play at a club. Does coming here make sense?
It does, because club sessions mostly go on team organisation and match preparation, leaving little repetition for individual technique. Our programme fills that gap: small groups, high-repetition individual work. We schedule days so they do not clash with club training.
When are positions decided?
Not in the younger groups — every child plays every position, including goalkeeper. Early position assignment permanently closes off underdeveloped sides of a player. Tendencies emerge naturally from around twelve or thirteen, and that is when we start guiding.
Is there goalkeeper training?
Not separately in the younger groups; every child takes a turn in goal. That benefits all of them, both for hand–eye coordination and for learning to read the game from behind. Specialist work is planned later for players who move towards the position.
What surface do sessions run on?
On the pitches at the academy’s own training camp. Pitch and goal dimensions are reduced by age group — a small child on a full-size pitch touches the ball far less often, which slows development.
Who do I contact about football sessions and registration?
The football groups run on a separate line: call 0546 484 76 36 for days, times and registration. For every other branch the academy number is 0544 316 36 36.
From the Programme
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FIRST STEP: A FREE ATHLETE ASSESSMENT
We do not write a programme without measuring first. After the assessment you will see, in numbers, how far from your target you actually are.