For the winter vacation, I came to Hamburg to watch the match of St. Pauli, which belongs to the second division of the German Bundesliga.
Jangct Pauli, whose progressive culture, such as anti-racism and anti-fascism, has been centered on fans for the past 50 years, boasts cult popularity.
In addition, the spirit of emphasizing that the true owner of professional soccer is neither a club nor a capitalist, but a fan, has developed into a willingness to create a community with passion for soccer rather than a desire to achieve excellent results. Jangkt Pauli, who calls himself a “Kiezkicker,” is sometimes called a “goblin club” and has served as the foundation for achieving an international fandom.
Jeanette Pauli players express their joy to fans after the game.
Another decision of Jankt Pauli, who drew attention in the field this time, is the youth development policy. Jankt Pauli announced through the club’s media in September that he would stop collaborating with youth players’ agents and personal trainers.
This policy, proposed by urging structural reform of youth soccer, is that dialogue with players is only for the players themselves and their parents. It is based on a fundamental change that limits the scope of supply and demand for players to Hamburg and its suburbs.
It seems to go against the current youth soccer trend of preoccupying and professionally nurturing better players, but it represents the club’s willingness to solve the fundamental problems penetrating modern youth soccer.
Regardless of the country, youth soccer is currently accompanied by many stakeholders such as parents, clubs, agents, and external trainers. As youth sports develop into a huge industry, early discovery of promising players is recognized as an attractive investment.
The professional development process is a necessary condition for success. There is already competition between clubs and agents to preoccupy promising players in the field of elementary and middle schools. It has become difficult to discuss modern soccer except for professional physical, mental and technical training, which is conducted separately from team training.
Of course, constructive advice from agents and personal trainers is an opportunity factor for promising players. Various physical, mental, and technical training emphasizing game analysis and expertise have contributed to the creation of faster tempo matches with stronger players, emphasizing the “professionalization” of youth soccer.
However, it is still questionable whether this change helps foster better players and build a healthy ecosystem.
Gianluca Zambrotta, a former member of the Italian national soccer team, is watching the players at a youth soccer clinic at Kyungshin Middle School in Seoul. Yonhap News
Is it right that the team’s performance is a more important measure instead of individual growth in youth soccer, the environment in which the club, which is supposed to be the main body of development, is difficult to preoccupy the players, the reality in which the team’s performance is divided according to other stakeholder standards. 안전놀이터 추천
Jean-Cette Pauli points out that the early professionalization of youth players negatively affects the development of basic soccer skills. This is because discussions on the fundamental basis for being good at soccer are excluded in an environment where youth players are increasing “what to do” and “what to have.”
Support and skepticism coexist in Jean-Cette Pauli’s move. There is a voice that it is a loss of competitiveness in rapidly changing modern soccer. However, it is clear that these changes provide a direction for improving the fundamental problems that youth soccer is currently facing and creating a healthy ecosystem.
It is hoped that Jangct Pauli’s youth development policy will serve as the foundation for players to develop into an environment where growth through learning and mistakes that they inevitably suffer as they grow.