Opening of U.S. AC Syracuse Academy in Moroccan Sahara

AC Syracuse, a community based professional soccer team in New York, will open an academy in the Moroccan Saharan city of Laayoune under a partnership sealed with the football league of Laayoune Sakia El Hamra to strengthen sports capabilities of local youth.

AC Syracuse and Laayoune Sakia El Hamra have agreed to promote and develop football in the Sahara region. The agreement was reached during the visit the American delegation is paying to the Sahara region.

AC Syracuse has pledged to provide more than 100 complete soccer uniforms, plus 100 professional soccer balls, hats and gear, and hundreds of books, for the youth of the new academy in Laayoune.

The new academy, combining sports with education, will have the best Moroccan and foreign coaches and staff, said AC Syracuse Youth Pulse president Samir Belhseine.

For his part, Head of the Regional Football League, Houcine Benaouis, said this academy will make a great contribution to the training and supervision of young people (boys and girls) in Laayoune to provide the national teams with players, and the animation of local sports life.

AC Syracuse works closely with local youth and amateur soccer organizations, talented coaches, knowledgeable trainers, dedicated investors and sponsors.

Its club includes a youth program that features an academy team, amateur reserve team and a men’s and women’s professional team in the National Independent Soccer Association. These teams create a system that focuses on player education and development and provides a pathway for players to develop and rise through the pyramid to the professional teams.