Pauleta launches PSG academy in India

Pedro Pauleta launched the PSG academy in New Delhi

New Delhi, Sep 24 (IANS) Former Portuguese and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) footballer Pedro Miguel Pauleta launched the French club's first academy in India here Wednesday.

The academy will launch its operations in two schools in Gurgaon (Shiv Nadar School and Shikshantar School) initially and has plans to develop one in Bangalore later.

"This is my first visit to India and I can see that football in the country is beginning to develop. The process of development has started and am sure the sport will benefit a lot from PSG' s world-class training programmes," said Pauleta, who scored 109 goals in 211 games for the PSG from 2003-2008.

As a part of their talent hunt programme, PSG will organise a league for underprivileged children in the National Capital Region (NCR). The league will start in November and will involve 850 kids from 38 schools.

"PSG is a global brand and we are in India to promote our brand of football. Launching this academy will increase our visibility in the country. Through the academy we aim to promote our club," Fabian Allegre, director, PSG brand development, said.

The PSG academy was established in 2005 as a feeder line for the senior team to develop home-grown players. It provides boys and girls aged 5-16 the opportunity to undergo world-class training and is tailored to each individual's profile. The objective of the academy is not only to discover new potential but to promote the values of the sport.

PSG has already opened schools and camps in Brazil, United States and Morocco.