Mo Salah is probably the best player in the world right now. With fourteen goals in sixteen Premier League games at time of writing, the Egyptian King looks on track to win his third golden boot in five seasons, also topping the assist rankings with nine.
Salah is one of just three Egyptians currently playing in the Premier League, alongside Arsenal’s Mohamed Elneny, and Villa’s Trézéguet. Only Omar Marmoush of VfB Stuttgart joins them in Europe’s top flight, with no Egyptians currently playing in La Liga, Serie A, or League 1.
That seems like a scant return for a passionate footballing nation, with a vibrant club culture and proud history. With more African Cup of Nations wins than any other nation, including an incredible three in a row from 2008 to 2012, fans of the Pharaohs are often left wondering why the conveyor belt of Egyptian talent continues to stutter.
The answer is complex. The Egyptian football pyramid is structured very differently to most European nations. Academies are often not attached to clubs, and talent can get stuck in limbo. Grassroots football receives little central funding, and is often blighted by poor infrastructure. In turn, a lack of governance makes it hard to provide quality coaching below the elite level.
Located in downtown Cairo, Footgenix is a world class training facility whose owners are trying to change that. They want to nurture the next generation of Egyptian talent, giving young players the chance to unlock their true potential, while encouraging wider participation throughout the community. Their approach is all about providing the best possible platform for development, giving young players access to the same training they would get in top European academies.
The founding team first saw our equipment in action on a business trip to the UK back in 2019, and ended up making a return visit to our HQ in Poole to take a closer look later that year. The cognitive aspects of ESA training were of particular interest, notably the ways in which our training programmes are built around honing specific attributes, with a focus on the intense repetition of core skills.
We were able to supply them with 11 products from all of our ranges including the ICON Range (pictured above), Precision Wall, Wireless Circuit & Shot Stopper. Feedback so far has been excellent from players and coaches alike and Elite Skills Arena, alongside other market leaders, play an integral part of the Footgenix training facility.
So what does the future hold for Footgenix? Ultimately the teams want to provide 360 support for budding athletes, including physios and nutritionists. While community work remains the lifeblood of the business, the ultimate measure of success will be producing quality Egyptian professionals; and hopefully a few that can take Europe by storm a la Mo.