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FOOTBALL

Football: Germany to open new national team academy

The German Football Association (DFB) announced on Friday that it has been given legal permission to build a new national training centre and academy in Frankfurt, which it hopes to open by 2021.

Football: Germany to open new national team academy
DFB president Reinhard Grindel. Photo: DPA

After years of planning, the DFB will finally open the 150-million-euro complex in an attempt to keep up with other European football powerhouses.

“Whoever wants to achieve optimal performance must also offer the optimal conditions in which to achieve it,” DFB president Reinhard Grindel said.

France's Clairefontaine centre outside Paris has been open since 1988, while England have seen massive improvement in their youth teams since opening St George's Park in 2012.

Their Under-20 and Under-17 teams won this year's World Cups, while the Under-19 side won the European Championship.

“Since the English have had their new academy, their youth teams have started performing again,” said DFB vice-president Rainer Koch.

“We must not and cannot rest on our laurels of the victory at the 2014 World Cup.”

The academy, to be built on an old racecourse, will be responsible for national team training, youth development and training for coaches and referees.

“Our goal is to constantly develop German football and to establish our academy as a seal of quality in the world,” said former Germany striker and project manager of the academy Oliver Bierhoff.

“We want to make our experts, coaches, teams and players better.”

READ ALSO: Will Timo Werner be Germany's next record-scoring football legend?

RACISM

VIDEO: Spain’s La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

Spain's La Liga on Monday said it was reviewing a video of a child making racist insults towards Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior during the 2-2 draw with Valencia at the weekend.

VIDEO: Spain's La Liga reviews video of boy racially abusing Vinicius

“We’re in the process of studying and analysing the facts from a legal standpoint to see what we can and should do,” La Liga sources said.

In a video published by a journalist for ESPN Brasil, and picked up by Spanish media, a boy sitting in a woman’s lap can be heard calling Vinicius a “monkey”.

The Brazilian scored twice for Madrid as his team recovered from two goals down at Mestalla on Saturday.

Vinicius raised his fist in a “Black Power” salute after the first of his two goals at a ground where he was racially abused last season. Valencia subsequently banned three people from the stadium for life.

The 23-year-old has become a symbol of the fight against discrimination in Spanish football after suffering racist abuse on many occasions, and he was jeered repeatedly by home supporters on Saturday.

Jude Bellingham was sent off after the final whistle against Valencia for protesting after the referee blew the final whistle right before the England midfielder headed home what he thought was the winning goal.

READ ALSO: Football star Vinicius highlights racist behaviour from Spanish fans

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