The future looks bright for elite young footballers in the North-east of Scotland with Aberdeen Football Club (AFC) signing Swedish energy firm Vattenfall as the sponsor of its Pre-Academy.

The club launched the Pre-Academy for around 40 under-8 and 9-year-olds earlier this year and energy developer Vattenfall has stepped in to provide financial backing and support across the centres at Buckie, Mintlaw, Inverurie, Angus and Aberdeen city.

Funding, provided by the company behind the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC) in Aberdeen Bay, will also enable the youngsters to develop their skills against the best players in their age range by taking part in tournaments at home and abroad.

AFC has a long history of promoting young players from their youth system through to the first team, with Scotland international Scott McKenna an excellent example of a player to have progressed through the ranks.

Other recent graduates to the first team from the youth team ranks include Dean Campbell and Bruce Anderson who both recently signed long-term contracts with the first team.

AFC player Scott McKenna said: “Having been with the Club since I was a very young boy, I know how important it is to ensure we’re giving the top talent in the region the best opportunity to progress and I’m sure in years to come, some of the youngsters currently with the Pre-Academy will be featuring in the Aberdeen first team.”

The Pre-Academy support is the latest link-up between the developer and the Club. During the 2017-18 season, Vattenfall provided support to enable AFC’s under-17 squad to take part in the world’s largest youth football tournament, the Gothia Cup. The competition took place in Gothenburg – the scene of the senior team’s greatest ever triumph.

Photo: Ross Johnston/Newsline Media

Vattenfall was also headline sponsor of the Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust (AFCCT) girls’ grassroots league in Aberdeen City and Shire. In all, around 500 young players and coaches have received support through these programmes to date.

Natalie Ghazi, local liaison officer for Vattenfall, said the company was keen to build strong relationships and become integrated within the communities where they work.

She said: “We are keen to support, promote and provide opportunities for youth development and leadership across the communities where we operate and, as a community club, AFC is a much loved focal point for many. Vattenfall is committed to being fossil free in a generation and we feel the club’s commitment to youth connects with our vision for the future.

“We hope the young players involved in the Pre-Academy enjoy being part of the programme and have the chance to run out at Pittodrie in the years to come.”

Liam McGarry, Pre-Academy Development Coach at AFC, said: “We are grateful to Vattenfall for their support with our Pre-Academy. It is hugely important to get young players into the learning environment and give them fun challenges to let them be all they can be. The sponsorship allows us to develop our programme across our centres in Aberdeen as well as covering travel costs to play against the best players in Scotland and further afield.”

The EOWDC, an 11-wind turbine offshore test and demonstration facility, was officially opened by Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on 7th September 2018. The 93.2MW facility includes two of the most powerful wind turbines to have been deployed anywhere in the world.