Red&Gold Football, a joint venture of FC Bayern Munich and Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC), today announced a new partnership with Gambinos Stars Africa, a renowned football academy in The Gambia.
The partnership will provide the top players of The Gambia and other West African nations with a controlled, self-determined path to the top European leagues as well as Major League Soccer (USA).
Red&Gold Football will use its own coaches and knowledge in cooperation with the existing Gambinos Academy management to develop a joint training philosophy that encompasses both the athletic advancement of the young players and their personal development.
"Having spent considerable time in Africa, and particularly in The Gambia, football on this continent has become more and more a matter of the heart for me,” said Helmut Hack, Gambinos Stars Africa founder & owner. “Through our joint efforts with Red&Gold Football, we will not only develop football talents but also provide young people with better perspectives for their lives. I am truly excited about the future possibilities this partnership brings, enabling us to continuously elevate our level of training and player development. I am very grateful having our academy team up with FC Bayern Munich and LAFC and being part of a unique system to develop African football talent for Africa, Europe and the U.S.”
The Academy of Gambinos Stars Africa is located an hour's drive south of Gambia's capital Banjul and was founded in 2019 by Hack. It is managed by Albert Martens. The Belgian and his family have been working in Africa for many years and have extensive experience with African soccer.
Since July 2023, Gambinos Stars Africa have been working closely with Sane Elite Stars (Senegal) and Phoenix Sports Association (Cameroon). Red&Gold Football will work to establish Gambinos Stars Africa as West Africa's center of excellence for youth development.
"We welcome Gambinos Stars Africa as a first, very important partner, said Jochen Sauer, managing director of Red&Gold Football. “Together we want to find the best talents in West Africa, offer them an optimal environment for their development and the best individual path to the European leagues or MLS. Right from the start, we were very impressed by the commitment of the academy, the heart and soul of all the staff and players, and by what Helmut Hack has already built up with them in a short time. Together, we want to achieve great things."
Hack, 74, was president of SpVgg Greuther Fürth between 1996 and 2018 and from 2003 also managing director of Spielvereinigung Greuther Fürth GmbH & Co. KGaA. In 2019, he was made an honorary member of the German Football League (DFL). In 2010, the members had elected him to the board of the then league association (now the DFL presidium). For three years, he served as second DFL vice president and chairman of the licensing committee, and also as member of the presidium of the German Football Association (DFB). Hack was particularly committed to the issues and rights of Bundesliga 2.
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