As of January 2025, the women's football area of the FC Bayern Campus will be one of the newly created German Football Association (DFB) Women's Performance Centres. "We're delighted to have been awarded the status of DFB Performance Centre," said Nathalie Bischof, talent development coordinator at FC Bayern Women. "It's a vindication of our work in the area of talent development and shows the very good conditions that we can offer the players at the FCB Campus."
A concept submitted by the club in spring 2024 was reviewed by the association, discussed with FC Bayern and approved. The DFB also visited the Campus in the north of Munich to see the outstanding conditions for themselves.
In order to retain the status as DFB Performance Centre, FC Bayern must fulfil particular requirements in the areas of 'sport/football training', 'environment management', 'management', 'infrastructure' and 'personnel'. Qualified coaches are a requirement in terms of personnel, as is cooperation with fitness and goalkeeping coaches and with experts in sports psychology. In addition to professional physiotherapeutic care, nutrition or child and youth protection, the requirements also include sports and organisational management.
"It's a positive signal to the inside and outside, and shows that talent development is very important to the club," continued Bischof. "In the last few years, we've really advanced the youth structures. We see talent development as a process in which we want to constantly continue to develop and invest a lot, in order to be able to give young female players the best possible training and tools that they need for their sporting development."
‘Players should be able to develop to their full potential’
"Many experts from the clubs, the committee for women's and girls‘ football, the regional associations, the DFB Academy as well as experts for the Men's Performance Centres and former national team players were involved in the development of the guidelines," explains Ulrike Ballweg, head of female talent development at the DFB. "The aim is to ensure that all young female players have the adequate conditions for competitive sport and good training and playing conditions in the future, so that they can develop to their full potential."
In addition to Bayern, TSG Hoffenheim and SGS Essen have received the certificate of DFB Women's Performance Centre. Eintracht Frankfurt, SC Freiburg and VfL Wolfsburg are official DFB Talent Development Centres from January.
'Sustainable optimisation of talent development'
DFB vice president Sabine Mammitzsch: "The introduction of the first six DFB Performance and Talent Development Centres will bring about a sustainable optimisation of female talent development. We want to work together with the clubs on an equal footing, develop this area further and support other clubs in this endeavour in the future. The focus is clearly on the player and her long-term and systematic development."
An interview with FC Bayern Women's Germany debutants:
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