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Thursday has been a very busy day for Dynamo President and General Manager Oliver Luck.
After arriving in Mexico City late Wednesday evening, Luck made it a point on Today to explore two of the most modern and efficient soccer facilities in Mexico, Pumas UNAM's El Pedregal, and Pachuca's Universidad del Fútbol, with the intention of gathering information and knowledge that will help him in his intentions of building a soccer-specific stadium in Houston.
"It's very impressive," said Luck after touring the Universidad del Fútbol. "With everything they have, it's almost like they are running a charter school. This is a very important piece of the puzzle, when you consider that many of the players Pachuca currently has have come up from their academy and made it to the first team, which is a model we would like to follow."
The Universidad del Fútbol is indeed like a charter school. Inaugurated on November 8, 2001, the school, which lies in an area of approximately 14 hectares, features dormitories, a clinic of sports medicine, classrooms, a gymnasium, a chapel, library, among other amenities. Its students can take High School classes and undergraduate and graduate courses in areas like business administration, communications, and psychology. Other clubs, such as Necaxa and Club America, have set up similar institutions. The one in Pachuca, however, was the one that caught Luck's interest.
"El Pedregal is beautiful, being practically in the middle of a quarry in Mexico City. I have also seen what Necaxa and America have done, but this is the one that interests me the most, due in part to its modernity," said Luck.
After visiting the University, Luck feels confident that a facility similar to this one may soon be a reality in Major League Soccer.
"We are doing everything we can to improve the level of our teams, particularly in the area of youth development. The Universidad del Fútbol provides a great model for us to follow and develop in the future."
