Tag: perseverance

International Football Academy Tips: Preparing For British Football

Posted on by ISAFA in Teams, Youth

Football AcademyDo you want to attend an international football academy in England? Well, be ready:  you may find yourself in over your head. The English game is very fast and physical as compared to American and European soccer. If you aren’t in peak physical condition, you might not be able to keep up.

However, with proper preparation, you can be head and shoulders above the rest of the players who haven’t taken the time to get ready for the trials they’ll face. Here are a few tips to get you ready for playing English football!

Tip #1: Work on your upper body strength.

British players are much physically stronger than North Americans, and we’ve seen many players struggle to keep up. At some international football academies, the first few weeks are spent doing a lot of fitness training on the track and in the gym, building core stability and conditioning.

Start working on your abdominal and your upper body strength now. Core stability is important for any athlete, and a strong upper body will help you fend off other players. The game in the U.K. can be very fast and furious, so you have to be strong, first.

We’ve seen many football players fail in England because they haven’t got the strength they need to compete there. If you’ve already started building your upper body strength before beginning a football program in the UK, then you won’t be one of them!

Tip #2: Increase your speed and endurance.

As we mentioned earlier, English football matches are both faster and more physical than soccer games elsewhere in the football-playing world. In addition to building your strength, you should also be working on your speed, agility, and endurance.

If you can, train with hurdles, poles, and ladders, in addition to doing sprints and endurance running. The more you practice your physical fitness beforehand, the more ready you’ll be for the fitness program you’ll undergo at a UK-based international football academy.

Tip #3: Regulate your sleep schedule.

One of the major adjustments we see players having to make is adapting to the rigid schedule of an international football academy. When you’re doing a 9-5 program that includes academic and physical discipline through the day, it’s important to get into the routine.

Before you ever set foot on the plane, start getting your body used to the schedule. Go to bed at the same time every night and get up at the same time every morning. That way, your body won’t have to go through the same period of adjustment when you’re trying to get used to all the other things that come with attending an international football academy.

Bonus Tip: Here’s what English coaches are looking for.

There are four things that most English coaches ask us about when it comes to players: attitude, athleticism, ability with the football, and commitment. They’re looking for players who aren’t just talented, but who have the right attitude and discipline to make it with a football club.

Players who are consistently late to practice, who do poorly in their academics, and who have disciplinary problems aren’t going to be picked for professional trials, no matter how talented they are. You have to bring more to the table than just talent.

Follow these tips, and you’ll excel not just in English international football academies, but in any international football academy you wish to attend.

Author: Joey Bilotta

Is Men’s Fashion Influenced By Football Stars?

Posted on by ISAFA in Fans, Teams, Youth

With the commercial appeal of football dominating, if not leading the football game in many ways (the industry in general is dominated by summer tours of countries with lucrative commercial Audiences, player endorsements and corporate sponsorships), football tends to buck most commercial trends. It is no small coincidence that over 60% of Premier League Teams are now foreign-owned by successful wealthy foreign owner who will tell you what you already know – that the game’s global commercial appeal is unquestionable. But how much influence do player yield off the field?

With the game having so much commercial involvement, the players have also enjoyed rocketing salaries, thanks to image rights whenever clubs use their photo or name, commercial endorsements with private sponsors and, the customary media attention that has come with it. With that comes the consumerism that is intrinsic to the proliferation of fashion websites, magazines and the attention surrounding football stars and their lifestyles – including, of course, what they are wearing.

messi ballon d or
How much then, if at all, do football stars influence men’s fashion? In the case of the most famous of all sport-related clothes horses, David Beckham, whose footballing success has been at the very least, matched by commercial appeal – quite a lot. Beckham has it seems been one of the few footballers to truly influence fashion in general – let alone men’s fashion.

From his Mohawk in 2002, adopted by millions around the world, to being the first men’s sports star to adorn the cover of leading women’s magazine, Marie Claire – how much of this is down to sporting prowess? How much is down to “just being a footballer?” There are dozens, if not hundreds of famous footballers, after all. Can you honestly say that many of those influence fashion as easily?

However, in general, for footballers with considerably less ability and commercial appeal than the David Beckhams and the Cristiano Ronaldos of this world, their influence on fashion isn’t very clear. Ergo, since not every footballer has the appeal as David Beckham, it can’t surely be said that all footballers in general have a positive influence on men fashion.

 

Author: Shannon Holland

Declare Your Team Loyalty With A Football Jersey

Posted on by ISAFA in Fans, Teams, Youth

It is a sport played by millions of people around the world. Boys and girls, men and women, from all walks of life and from nearly every nation on earth; football boasts a pool of players that is vaster and varied than possibly any other sport. Football’s appeal is understandable; not only is it a fun and exciting game to play, it is a sport that nearly anyone can play as the only thing you really need is a ball and your feet. However, that is not to say that there is not more to football than the ball, and fans and players of organized football know that the importance of football jersey cannot be understated.

Arsenal Training Jersey A football jersey can convey the personality of your team. From the colors to your team crest or logo; your team’s football jersey is what makes the first impression on your opponents. If you are the coach or organizer of a youth team, or even a team of older and more experienced players, then selecting a jersey with the right look is an important part of your job. Online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores alike offer selections of jerseys as well as the ability to put names and numbers on the back, just like those seen on the jerseys of the professionals.

Like jerseys in other sports, fans of football also like to wear the colors and crest of their favorite teams and favorite players. The unmistakable colors and cuts of the most famous football jerseys are clearly identifiable, even from a distance, and wearing them allows fans to make a statement of loyalty to their beloved club. However, simply wearing the football jersey of your favorite team is only one way that soccer fans enjoy the thrill of wearing an official jersey. The worldwide appeal of football gives fans of the game hundreds of ways to add new jerseys to their collection.

What true football fan cannot appreciate the appeal of wearing the colors of great teams like FC Barcelona, Arsenal, PSG, AC Milan or Manchester United? And with combinations of home and away colors, as well as short and long sleeve versions, even the love of a single team can spawn a collection of several jerseys. Further, there is more to loving football than loving a single team. The various leagues around the world can make it easy to have several teams to root for, and each has their own distinctive collections of jerseys that fans will covet.

Rooting for specific teams is one way that people find themselves collecting jerseys, but rooting for favorite players might be even more popular. Wearing a football jersey with the Messi, Beckham, Zlatan, Ronaldo, are just a few names of football greats that adorn so many jerseys. And of course, let us not forget the ever popular Pele, who is still a popular choice decades after his playing career has ended.

Favorite teams and players aside, perhaps nothing catches the imagination of football fans like the World Cup. It is a time when team alliances are put aside and patriotism rules the day. With 198 nations fielding teams, and 32 of those teams making it to the last tournament, the World Cup is an event that drives football fans all over the world to buy a new football jersey that conveys their national pride.

Whether you are wearing the jersey of the team on which you play, or the jersey of the team you root for the most, using the Internet you can find a football jersey for the team, player, or colors that best define you.

Author: M. Jedediah

History of Football Uniform

Posted on by ISAFA in Teams

The origin of European Football is a hotly contested topic and  the game took a professional shape in the United Kingdom in the late 18th century but a team uniform was not of the early innovations of the new sport.

A similar colored shirt or cap or scarf was worn to differentiate teams but around the 1870s, steps were taken to move soccer uniforms to what they are commonly known as today. Even then, matching shorts and socks were not considered part of the team uniform until the early 1900s. Long trousers or pantaloons were common features of early football games and the earliest version of shin guards made an appearance before shorts and socks were properly introduced.
However, as soon as the traditional top, shorts and socks uniform was established, its popularity spread like wildfire and football teams around the world were noted by their particular uniform.

Chris Bonzon playing defender

As football spread around the world with travelers and former UK citizens introducing the game to new countries, a similarity in kits grew. This has led to the familiarity between strips of teams around the world. One example would be Juventus from Italy wearing the same stripes as Notts County, black and white stripes. As time has moved on, Juventus have become far more famous around the world but at the start of the 20th century, Notts County were one of the biggest clubs in England and the world of football at the time.

With two world wars spanning the next few decades, any developments in football  fashion was mainly cosmetic with the few changes focusing on moving away from a proper shirt to the style of top that is more commonly associated with the modern era of the game.

As the advent of European Cup and the rise of television, football fans around the world became more aware of teams from other nations and the different styles of kit started to create new influences. One of the most important influences came from Real Madrid, European Cup winners for the first five years. Real Madrid wore a striking all white kit, most notably copied by Leeds United who changed their blue and yellow kit, and sported a smaller pair of shorts than the baggy efforts that were common in Britain. The 1960s not only brought about a revolution in the world of music, there was a fashion change in the world of football as button collars and long shorts went out of style and circle and V-neck collars with smaller shorts.

The 1970s saw even further fashionable changes but the next revolution in football uniforms came with the selling of replica shirts and then the addition of sponsors’ logos on the kit. Football clubs realized they could make money by selling copies of their strips to fans and as televised football  grew more popular, companies were eager to have their name positioned on the team kit.

Although the 1980s were memorable as the era when football shorts were at their smallest and tightest, the most important changes in football uniforms since then have revolved around the technology. Sportswear technology has allowed kit manufacturers to make uniforms that are lighter, cooler and draw sweat away from players’ bodies. All of these innovations are designed to give an edge to the top players in a sport where the slightest advantage can make all the difference.

Fashion trends and styles come and go but the demand for football uniforms has never been higher than it is today. With new technologies making the kit even lighter and more suitable to the quickening pace of the game, football uniforms will continue to keep evolving and fascinating fans the world over.

Components of a Successful Defender in Football Training

Posted on by ISAFA in Uncategorized

When participating in football training, it is important to know the key components of being a successful defender. The main element of defending consists of ensuring that the opposing team does not have possession of the ball. Some defending moves all your team to gain possession of the ball, where other defending moves allow you to simply make sure that the opposing team does not have possession of the football. Below are some key components of a successful defender in football training:

The first part of successful defending in football training is the fact that you must keep a strong focus on the football throughout the game. By knowing where the ball is and what techniques to use to get the ball away from the opposing team, you can scan for opportunities to defend. This is done by considering the place of the ball, and deciding what strategy that the opposing team is using. It is important to quickly find this strategy and come up with a method that places you ahead of the moves of the opposite team.

 
Defender
The second part of a successful defender in football training is to make sure that you are familiar with various skills and techniques. The more that you know, the better you will be at defending. It is essential to learn different dribbling and passing techniques. The main goal in defending is to keep the ball out of the control of the opposite team. Once you have ensured that the other team does not have possession of the ball any longer, you can start developing a strategic plan to keep up control of the football and score your next goal.

When defending, it is important to know many different techniques. You should make sure that you are mentally and physically capable of performing these techniques. Playing football is a physically challenging sport, and it remains true even during training. It is important to support a healthy lifestyle throughout training to be certain that you are up to the task. You will want to make sure that you are eating healthy and drinking plenty of water each day. This is a necessary part of making the most of your training and being on top of your game when it comes to defending.

In order to be a successful defender it is important that you do many drills. These drills can be as a person or as part of a group. A fine mixture of both kinds of drills is ideal. This will help train your body to successfully carry out many motions. These drills will help you to carry out numerous tactical maneuvers with ease. Once you are familiar with the tactical application of many drills and defending techniques, your football training will improve.

Chris Bonzon

There are many things that you can do to be a successful defender. It is important to make sure that you are mixing a healthy lifestyle with other key components to maximize your potential for success.