King’s Footballers Train at Real Madrid

Our footballers from Fifth Form, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth returned to Madrid during the Christmas holiday for a Football training camp at Valdebebas, Real Madrid’s impressive training complex.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, last year’s football trip took place to Manchester City; we were glad this year to see the return of our international trips. 30 excited King’s footballers met at School on Thursday 15^th of December at a very early 2.30am. It was an action-packed five days, enjoying four training sessions with Real Madrid Academy coaches at their fantastic facilities.

There were also two practice football matches for each team, in which the first team drew one and lost one against good local opposition. The second team managed to win one and lose one.  All the football games were very competitive, and a great experience for all the players.

Within this busy schedule, the students found time to take part in a laser tag session, which was very entertaining. The team also took tours around the stadiums and museums of Real Madrid’s Bernabeu and Atletico Madrid’s Metropolitano Stadium, followed by a quick walking trip through the centre of Madrid.

Head of football, Mr Sarriegui said, “The trip was a great success, with plenty of good memories and fantastic opportunities for our footballers. The footballers will start the main season in their respective teams with a good camp behind them. The 1^st team squad continued their great start since playing their first-round match in September, reaching the last 28 out of 120 schools in the ISFA Cup. We are still in the last 16 of the ISFA National Shield competition and in the quarterfinals of the County Cup. Many thanks go to Pro Handling Solutions for supporting us with tour kit for our camp at Valdebebas.”