Benfica Academy Armenia officials visit Lisbon ahead of planned 2027 opening

Portuguese football club Benfica continues preparations for the opening of its football academy in Armenia. Representatives of the Benfica Academy Armenia project visited Lisbon to gain a deeper understanding of the club's youth development methods, organizational structure, and philosophy.

According to Benfica's official website, academy founder Alfred Sadoyan and director Artur Azaryan spent several days in Portugal as part of a working program focused on studying the club's youth development system.

The Armenian project representatives met with staff from various departments of Benfica. The working sessions took place at Estádio da Luz and the adidas Benfica Campus, the training facility where the Portuguese club develops its young footballers.

Particular attention was paid to training methodology, organizational processes, and the values underpinning Benfica's youth development system.

In addition, at the invitation of club president Rui Costa, Sadoyan and Azaryan attended Benfica's UEFA Europa League match against Scottish side Celtic on Matchday 2 of the 2026/27 league phase. The Portuguese club secured an impressive 4-1 home victory.

Benfica Academy Armenia to accommodate more than 1,000 children

Benfica Academy Armenia is scheduled to open in the summer of 2027. The project is being developed through a partnership between the Portuguese club and Football Investment Group.

As previously announced, the academy will be built at the Avan Football Academy, the Technical Centre of the Football Federation of Armenia in Yerevan.

According to the plans, the new football center will feature six football pitches, a stadium, and other modern facilities designed for the training and development of young players.

The academy will have the capacity to accommodate more than 1,000 children and teenagers aged 4 to 17.

The training program will cover various levels, ranging from recreational football and introductory training to competitive teams and the development of the most promising young players.

The Armenian academy will adopt Benfica's methodology, which focuses on the progressive development of footballers according to their age, individual abilities, and potential.

"We want to bring not only Benfica's methodology but also its spirit to Armenia"

Benfica's International Business Manager, Lourenço Menezes, emphasized that introducing the Armenian partners to the club's internal development system represents an important stage in the project's implementation.

According to Menezes, the objective is not simply to establish a football school under a well-known brand, but to create an academy that fully reflects the Portuguese club's philosophy.

Alfred Sadoyan, the founder of the Armenian academy, also expressed confidence in the project's successful implementation. He praised Benfica's youth development system and stated that similar principles would be applied in Armenia.

The project is now entering the next phase of organizational preparations. Before the opening, work must be completed on the infrastructure, training programs, and other arrangements necessary to welcome young players, families, coaches, and staff.

In the long term, Benfica Academy Armenia aims to become not only a center for developing young footballers but also a platform for coach education, contributing to the development of football both in Armenia and across the Caucasus region.