Real Madrid, one of the world’s most prestigious football clubs, recently launched a football school in Montego Bay. The school is managed by former Jamaican national goalkeeper Aaron Lawrence. Just like any football academy, the Real Madrid football school will allow youngsters to hone their football skills but is also expected to be more than that.

One can look at the school as a franchise of the Real Madrid brand. What possibilities does this open for Jamaican football? Assuming that Real Madrid uses the franchise model in this particular case, trainees would be exposed to the Real Madrid youth player development philosophy. For the Jamaican coaches, exposure to the Real Madrid philosophy would provide an exchange opportunity as far as coaching is concerned.

As far as scouting is concerned, the football academy could also serve as a channel enabling promising local players to get tryout opportunities with the Real Madrid senior team. The success of the Montego Bay-based academy could also serve as a catalyst as far as the establishment of other football academies in Jamaica.