"Factory of Dreams: Benfica": humanism and untold stories

BTV REPORT

Benfica Campus, and specifically the 360s Space, got all dressed up to host the presentation of the docuseries "Factory of Dreams: Benfica", a four-episode documentary, exclusively on Prime Video, which shows the backstage of the Reds' training center and the working methods in the Club's youth football. António Silva, Henrique Araújo, Pedro Mil-Homens and Pedro Ramalho Marques reveal, first-hand and in the first person, unpublished concerns and stories that you can follow starting this Friday, November 11th.

The 360s Space received about 150 guests, with emphasis on the President of SL Benfica, Rui Costa, former players, youth football coaches, and members of the Governing Bodies of the Club. The goal? To premiere the first episode of the series, called "Initiation", which shows how it all begins and where there are testimonials, among others, Rúben Dias, João Cancelo or Tiago Rodrigues, a 13-year-old from the Algarve, who went to Seixal a year ago after his dream, while his parents live in the Algarve.

The 150 or so people present were taking their seats, and everything was ready for the kick-off. Before the episode itself, an informal conversation - as is the series' trademark - between Pedro Mil-Homens, António Silva, Henrique Araújo, and Pedro Ramalho Marques.

The general director of youth football shared his first concern when he was challenged to make a documentary about the daily life at Seixal.

"We had the first conversations a year ago and I thought: 'How is it going to look? We're going to film some matches, pieces of training... it's going to be nice for Benfiquistas, the parents, the athletes...' At first, I was doubtful, because I don't know of any other similar documentary, but as things went on, and now that I have seen all four episodes, I have to say that it is a top job. Benfiquistas who are interested in youth football, parents who have their children here, and young people who want to make their dreams come true will love watching these four episodes. The production company manages to show in the first person what goes on here", mentioned Pedro Mil-Homens.

"Luck is also part of the sport and in choosing a season. We couldn't have chosen any other season to illustrate the work of Benfica's youth football, as we won the UEFA Youth League, the Intercontinental Cup [U-20], and the U-19 National Championship. All this was the icing on the cake, in a year that was golden for Benfica's youth football, in a year in which our main goal - and that is our reason for existing -, is to put players in the first team, was a mission accomplished", stressed the director of the Benfica Campus.

The first to step onto the pitch was António Silva. Today he is a success story, with a call-up for the 2022 World Cup, but once he was a young man who went through "very difficult times.

"The support of my parents was very important for me as a player. I went through very difficult times at Benfica and, looking back, seeing what I'm achieving - and which is still short for what I aspire to -, it's something very important, and without a doubt, the support my parents gave me was crucial for me to be able to be here. I thank my parents very much and I believe they are very proud of me", revealed the center-back, who added: " Benfica Campus was my second home. I don't even remember living with my parents. The support of everyone working at Benfica was very important."

From the central defender came a long pass to the striker from Madeira Henrique Araújo.

"I arrived at Benfica Campus at a different stage than António [Silva]. He came with 11/12 years, I came with 16 years. I felt that I wasn't prepared to come here so soon, even because it's different coming from the North or the South and coming from Madeira, but I always had the support of my parents and of all the Benfica Campus structure", he claimed.

"What I felt the most different about when I came here was the organization of the Club, whether in Youth Football or in the first team. Not only in the social and educational part, but also in the coaches. There is a lot of attention to detail. The advice I give to the younger ones is: work hard and always listen to the coaches", added Henrique Araújo. 

Pedro Ramalho Marques, one of the directors of "Factory of Dreams: Benfica", said how it all came about and also shared what impressed him the most.

"The project was co-produced between me and Ricardo Ribeiro. We had a local team to be close to the Benfica Campus and to the story, of what was happening. We had a big character, which was Benfica Campus, and we had to be prepared for what was going to happen. We didn't know they were going to win the Youth League and Intercontinental Cup, but we had a good background because of the great players who came out of here and whom we could talk to. The first episode is the initiation of the Campus, the second is about the training methodology, the third is about the scouting and the fourth is dedicated to the Youth League and the road", he highlighted.

"The infrastructure is excellent, but it is the people who are here that make all the difference and we hope to pass on that more human touch. I was impressed by the care for the children, I was impressed by the care for each athlete. Each one is treated individually. Of course there are always things to tell, but I hope you will see that this is a very large sporting and social project", stated Pedro Ramalho Marques.

Pedro Marques, explained, to the present media outlets, what is the main objective of the Club's youth football, either on a daily basis, or in this documentary.

"Looking at the series and this production, what we say is that our biggest projection factor is the number of players that we manage to produce and help develop to reach the Benfica's first team, be successful, fulfill their dreams, and win titles. What we tried in this documentary was to give visibility to the people working on this project", he underlined.