16-year-old son wants to be a footballer!

In the UK there are many opportunity to improve his skills. I saw a football summer camp in Manchester City! It is a school share by Manchester City football team where the children could learn English and gain football skills during a two weeks programme. That could be very interesting for your 16 year-old son. You can see more detail if you want, the programme is sold by trans world soccer: twsoccer dot com This football summer holiday could be a beginin before let him go in a football school. He'd be 18 by now. This thread is two years old. Please stop dragging up old threads to advertise.

In the UK there are many opportunity to improve his skills. I saw a football summer camp in Manchester City! It is a school share by Manchester City football team where the children could learn English and gain football skills during a two weeks programme. That could be very interesting for your 16 year-old son. You can see more detail if you want, the programme is sold by trans world soccer: twsoccer dot com This football summer holiday could be a beginin before let him go in a football school.

Like one of the other posters here the first thought that crossed my mind was a university like Loughborough. I have a friend who was a very keen rugby player, picked as a junior for a very good club team. Sadly he snapped his cruciate ligament at age 20 and was unable to play at a high level any longer. However thanks to his education he was able to complete university qualify as an engineer and also completed a rugby coaching programme at the same time. He now coaches in his free time and plans on taking early retirement to get more involved in the sport when he can afford to. Going to university opened more options for him. Another idea as some have also suggested is that between now and university age playing competitively at local clubs and attending a high quality football based summer camp could also be hugely beneficial for him.

Have a look at Kanoute footbal club, its run by Fredric Kanoute. I think the max age maybe 15 but she he could give you advice with him being so well connected. http://gulfnews.com/sport/football/kanoute-launches-soccer-school-in-dubai-1.1341743

I don't subscribe to the notion that many successful businessmen have no degrees so it's ok to not get a degree. If we begin to preach this to them, they may fall on the way-side, without a degree and not turn into a Steve Jobs or Bill Gates First thing, the chances of turning into a Steve Jobs or Bill Gates are incredibly low anyway. Luck has a massive amount to do with it - they were both born at the right time to be able to get into a completely new industry. And secondly, they didn't/don't have degrees! Jobs dropped out of university to found Apple, Gates did the same to found Microsoft. More recently, Mark Zuckerberg dropped out of university to turn Facebook into a business, so the world's youngest billionaire doesn't have a degree either. Sure, having a degree is a good thing. But it's certainly not any kind of prerequisite for a successful life, even if you never turn into a Jobs, Gates or Zuckerberg (and 99.99% of people with degrees won't achieve that level of success). <em>edited by Madge_Gustard on 30/05/2014</em>

When you say your son wants to be a professional footballer do you mean he dreams of making it big with Barcelona/Real Madrid/Man Utd etc or would he be equally happy living a relatively simple life in the lower leagues or as some sort of coach? The true question he needs to answer is does he dream of earning huge amounts of money as a professional footballer or does he simply dream of earning a living through being able to play football every day regardless of the sums involved? The reason I ask is because at 16 he is already very, very unlikely to make the grade at the highest level as he will be up against kids who've been receiving professional training every single day for the last 5-8 years. I don't wish to be a killjoy, but he would have to be exceptionally talented for the top clubs to be interested at 16. Even getting his foot in the door for them to come and check him out would be nigh on impossible. I know I'm talking like he's in his 30s but at 16 the boat has usually sailed in professional football. At his age, his best route is to go to university in Europe and play at an amateur level in his spare time. If he really is an exceptional talent, he'll soon rise through the ranks as he will become well known to local scouts. A number of players have eventually made it to the top leagues in Europe by doing this but it's a very hard and unglamorous slog. It all depends how much he really wants it. Edit: GMKSME's advice on getting him involved in the UAE-based soccer schools of the major Spanish/Italian/English teams is also very good. These aren't really true academies as they'll take anyone who pays the subscription but it will expose your son to actual professional coaches from the clubs involved. They will very quickly be able to tell you if your son has any chance of making it. edited by HereComesTheSun on 28/05/2014 <em>edited by HereComesTheSun on 28/05/2014</em>

DS wanted to be a professional musician. He has been praised to the skies in Dubai, admitted to senior positions in national orchestras etc. Last summer, being a supportive parent, l sent him to Europe to work with a fairly minor, junior orchestra. While he enjoyed the experience very much, he also had a major wake-up call as his musicianship was sadly lacking in comparison to the others. I was disappointed for him, but he is happy to do music for pleasure now. Your son may well be the next Ronaldo or Beckham. Fantastic. But if there is any way that you can expose him to some serious competition before he makes his decision, then do it. Perspective is very valuable. This is the best advice on here. In Dubai our children are big fish in a little pond. When they go out to swim in the sea, they may discover there are bigger, faster fish out there. That's not to discourage your child, but to be realistic and challenge him. There are several academies here that have relationships with professional teams in the UK. Go Pro and E-Sports being 2 of them. There are also several academies and clubs that have "sent" players to the US to boarding schools/colleges on football scholarships. Precor is one of the clubs and I think Go Pro has done so as well. That's best of both worlds isn't it? To get a sports scholarship that will pay for your education while you play the sport you love at a competitive level.

This was in DH's paper this morning - http://sport360.com/article/school-sports/21550/gems-creates-uaes-first-ever-school-sport

DS wanted to be a professional musician. He has been praised to the skies in Dubai, admitted to senior positions in national orchestras etc. Last summer, being a supportive parent, l sent him to Europe to work with a fairly minor, junior orchestra. While he enjoyed the experience very much, he also had a major wake-up call as his musicianship was sadly lacking in comparison to the others. I was disappointed for him, but he is happy to do music for pleasure now. Your son may well be the next Ronaldo or Beckham. Fantastic. But if there is any way that you can expose him to some serious competition before he makes his decision, then do it. Perspective is very valuable.

Why not combine the two requirements at a university such as Loughborough in the UK, which has a fantastic sporting as well as academic tradition.

I never said education isn't important - of course it is! I was just giving an example. But it's certainly not the be and and end all of being a success. Yes, absolutely there needs to be a balance.

I don't subscribe to the notion that many successful businessmen have no degrees so it's ok to not get a degree. If we begin to preach this to them, they may fall on the way-side, without a degree and not turn into a Steve Jobs or Bill Gates. We raise our kids to know that school is important and it is, right up to that University degree that costs a fortune, because that's what parents do. We as parents are also tasked with the responsibility of understanding our children's dreams and how to help them get there. It's a very difficult position we are in. However thanks to life, we as parents are able to/should be to look at the bigger picture. Soccer and Education - how to make the two co-exist. At such a volatile age such as your son's it's important to find a balance between his dreams and reality. I second a lot of the ladies who have said let him explore his football passion while at University here. And with that compromise I am sure your husband will come around.

I've been trying to remember the team I was thinking of, and yes it's Bolton. Wembley have a similar course. As the mother of a 17 year old, I am very aware that he is practically an adult with his own (valid) opinions - in another year or so your husband will have no control over what your son does (short of cutting him off financially) - so your husband really needs to accept that your son is now entitled to his opinion. Tough though for you, caught in the middle...

I agree with your husband. All of these glorified players, Beckham, Ronaldo, are the one-in-a-millions. The Emirati team is highly competitive to enter, and if he were to get onto it, he would possibly get so much while he is playing, but once he turns 30, it's game over. And for the next 30-40 years? University is a must for me. I am an education first person, too. Education will never be a memory, it is a forever. Start having a look at how he could achieve both, so as to never have an unfinished dream. Middlesex is here, that could be an option. Balancing his social side will be the hardest. You can go to school and get an education at ANY point in your life! Whereas there is only a small window of opportunity to really make it in sports. At the end of the day many degrees are simply a piece of paper. Many of the most successful businessmen in the world never got a degree. Talent and skill counts for far more. If you impose your dream on your children, they will only grow to resent you. edited by FairyDust on 28/05/2014 It depends on where you want to go. Times have changed. Jobs are so hard to get. Ask a woman who took care of family until she was 30 then tried to break into the work force and get a degree how smooth the transition was. Oh well, life is what it is meant to be. Personal preferences aside, there is no such thing as a wrong choice when there are good options being selected from.

The problem is with your DH and not your son. For the majority, they never have the opportunity to follow their dream, let alone achieve it. If your son genuinely has the talent to make it as a pro footballer then please let him follow his dream. In Europe most youngsters of his age continue their education hand in hand with the football at a club. A few years back Sharjah FC partnered with Bolton Wanderers. This might provide some opportunities for your son as they have some fantastic education and sports facilities, not to mention Premiership standard coaching etc. http://sharjahfc.ae/bolton_wanderers.php Speak to the coaches at the club and see where his talent might take him. Most importantly your family needs to support your son's decisions. Education will be available to him for the rest of his life. Football only for the next 20 years.

Talking of resentment, FairyDust, that's already BIG in this house, as my husband is furious with my son and my son is so so resentful that his father has no interest in acknowledging his talent or love for sports. This has grown over the years with my son's hobby growing into a hoped-for profession in sports; he has no interest in fame etc (he plays defence), it is just his passion and interest in life. His father sadly has no interest: only degrees and intellectual fame count for him. Yeah, see that's the issue. Put it this way, my father followed his dreams, his father never agreed with it and they ended up having virtually no relationship whatsoever. My parents never really agreed with what I wanted to do, but they always supported me 100%. You have to. Children should have the unconditional support of their parents. Let him at least try, if it works out fantastic, if not support him when he needs it. But what you don't want is for the relationship to become so bad, that at 18 he leaves home, does it anyway and never speaks to his father again.

I agree with your husband. All of these glorified players, Beckham, Ronaldo, are the one-in-a-millions. The Emirati team is highly competitive to enter, and if he were to get onto it, he would possibly get so much while he is playing, but once he turns 30, it's game over. And for the next 30-40 years? University is a must for me. I am an education first person, too. Education will never be a memory, it is a forever. Start having a look at how he could achieve both, so as to never have an unfinished dream. Middlesex is here, that could be an option. Balancing his social side will be the hardest. You can go to school and get an education at ANY point in your life! Whereas there is only a small window of opportunity to really make it in sports. At the end of the day many degrees are simply a piece of paper. Many of the most successful businessmen in the world never got a degree. Talent and skill counts for far more. If you impose your dream on your children, they will only grow to resent you. <em>edited by FairyDust on 28/05/2014</em>

I agree with your husband. All of these glorified players, Beckham, Ronaldo, are the one-in-a-millions. The Emirati team is highly competitive to enter, and if he were to get onto it, he would possibly get so much while he is playing, but once he turns 30, it's game over. And for the next 30-40 years? University is a must for me. I am an education first person, too. Education will never be a memory, it is a forever. Start having a look at how he could achieve both, so as to never have an unfinished dream. Middlesex is here, that could be an option. Balancing his social side will be the hardest.

A friend of my son has the same ambition, but with no real interest in education. However he's now discovered degrees in football, which can be combined with Law, Accountancy, Marketing - all sport / football related. Maybe he could do a relevant degree while still playing?

If he excels at sport and has talent, it would be great to encourage it. Having an education is important, but not the be all and end all. I think you have to be careful about imposing YOUR dreams of what you want him to be. By the sounds of it, your boy would be brilliant in the fitness industry.