EduKick's blog

When you set out to train at an elite football (soccer) academy, or work out your own football training in advance at home, it can be difficult to stay on target. But if you have a goal in mind, and specific steps to achieve that goal, you're miles ahead of other people who do nothing but dream.

If you want to play football like a professional, then you need to start thinking like a professional. Football academies offer a crucial opportunity for players to showcase their skills but you have to be willing to work hard on and off the pitch.

If you want to play football like a professional, then you need to start thinking like a professional. Football academies offer a crucial opportunity for players to showcase their skills but you have to be willing to work hard on and off the pitch.

Players in EduKick football academies train under the eye of professional team coaches and staff day in and day out. Bolton Wanderers International Academy staff coach EduKick players in England and in Madrid, Spain they train under the technical staff of the famous Aragones family. The pace can be intense.

BOLTON, England – The EduKick England football academy boys played their first game against Manchester College, and though they played hard, Manchester triumphed, 2-1. Though the loss was disappointing, Bolton Wanders FC International Academy Manager (and EduKick England Technical Football Director) Dave Bailey noticed much improvement on the pitch.

Making the decision to send a child overseas can be tough, but as one mother found out, it could be one of the best decisions that you make.

Fran Stone made the decision to let her 15-year-old son, Jared, travel to England for six months, where he attended EduKick's half-year international soccer boarding school in Bolton, England.

"You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take." – Wayne Gretsky

Gretsky may have been a hockey player, but his quote about scoring goals is true in any sport, including soccer. A lot of students in our EduKick soccer camps and boarding schools start out with hesitation to shoot. We teach them to take advantage of every opportunity. If you never shoot, you'll never score.

Here are a few tips to help you make every shot count:

A good pre-game routine is vital to playing a good soccer game. Unfortunately, many players don't know what they need to do, or they neglect to develop a good routine. Both mental and physical pre-game rituals are necessary to help you play your best.

Here are some of the tips and tactics our technical coaches use to keep soccer boarding school students in top shape.

Soccer boarding school tip: The night before

This landmark event kicked off with 17 soccer players arriving in Madrid from our international soccer boarding schools in England, France and Italy.

This is a worldwide first. Never before has the EduKick family of soccer boarding school players from England, France, Italy, and Spain gone head-to-head in the same international soccer tournament.

Not only did we have EduKick Madrid returning to the Alcalá De Henares Cup to defend their champion title...

But for the first time, a team comprised of EduKick players from three different EduKick European boarding schools competed in the Alcalá De Henares Cup.

Sometimes it happens. You end up playing on a team with less ability than you. Teams at our international soccer schools gel very well. Players travel halfway around the world to attend, so they all arrive prepared and focused on the same goal: to play soccer.

It can be a different story with local club teams. You're facing different levels of skill and motivation, and you have to work with what you have. Players coming home from our international soccer schools often face this dilemma, so we put together some tips for how to handle it.