The 2014 Future Players Gauteng Talent Search Programme heads for Randfontein

Johannesburg, Thursday, 13th February Â2014 – The Gauteng Province has produced some of the greatest names in South African football history and is a known hotbed of talent for the country.

In all corners of the province there are hidden gems waiting to be unearthed and given the opportunity to be the next Ace Ntsolengoe, Jomo Sono or Kaizer Motaung.

That is the aim of the 2014 Future Players Gauteng Talent Search, which continued across the province last weekend with an event at the Sports School of Excellence that drew 300 more boys and girls from Ekurhuleni North to try their luck.

It was the 10th event in the province in the lead-up to the finals that will be held at the Nike Football Training Centre in Pimville on March 29, 2014.

A total of 12 coaches put the young, aspiring footballers through a set of skills tests designed to bring out the potential in them and perhaps catapult them on to a career as a professional footballer.

The next 2014 Future Players Gauteng Talent Search will be held at the Randfontein English Primary School for learners in the Gauteng West on Saturday, 15th February.

Aside from the football there was also an important social responsibility aspect and all learners were given a presentation by either LoveLife, South Africa’s largest national AIDS prevention, education and behaviour initiative for young people, as well as Grassroot Soccer who were both present on the day.

The organizers of the 2014 Future Players Talent Search hope that once again this year they will see over 10 000 learners from around the Gauteng province be assessed by expert coaches to determine if they have the potential to make a professional career out of football.

The Future Players initiative, run in conjunction with the Gauteng Provincial Government, led by the Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, is open to youngsters aged 13 to 16 (boys and girls).

  • We had a wonderful football and cultural experience in Gauteng. The tournament and activities were very well organized and we found everyone involved extremely helpful and accommodating. We have all returned home with fantastic memories of our time in South Africa, both on and off the pitch, and have made many new friends as a result of the trip. I hope that we are invited to participate in future tournaments.

    Everton Academy Head Coach

  • The experience both on and off the field for our players during the Future Champions tournament in Gauteng was life-enriching for all those who participated. We were privileged enough to win this edition but what will be bringing us back in future is the cross-cultural education our players receive from spending time with athletes from all over the world. They are human beings before they are football players and enriching them with other cultures is as rewarding as the experience they receive on the field.

    Club Tijuana Director of Football

  • After twenty years of experiencing tournaments around the globe, Future Champions is hands down the best organized, well run International Tournament we have ever participated in. Bringing teams from dozens of different countries provided our boys exposure to cultural diversity they only read about in textbooks. It’s amazing how sport can be the cultural link that provides the opportunity to interact with each other and discover that our global community is a bit smaller than they realized. We had a football and cultural experience that will be cherished for the rest of our lives.

    Director of USYSA Select

  • For us to compete in Future Champions is much more than playing a series of matches. It is an opportunity to compete and contrast our level against the best teams from around the world and the possibility of living in another culture and environment for an unforgettable week, learning about the history of the fight for human rights.

    Director of Aspire Academy

  • The addition of a girls’ competition this year is a natural expansion for what has become a hugely popular event. Over and above the football, the players are also exposed to life-skills courses and HIV/AIDS awareness that could end up saving their lives in the future. We have had an amazing partnership with the Gauteng Province over the last decade and we thank each and every stakeholder for making the Future Champions Gauteng campaign such a huge success

    Tournament director