SL Benfica opens football academies in Egypt in partnership with Pyramids FC

Sport Lisboa e Benfica has signed another technical partnership, which aims to continue its global expansion strategy, with Pyramids FC, the club leading the Egyptian Premier League on matchday 6 and competing in the African Champions League (CAF).

The partnership was announced in Cairo, at an event marking the kick-off of yet another technical cooperation. For the first time in its history, SL Benfica is securing a long-term partnership with a Premier League club in Egypt, a country with a great tradition in African football, with seven CAN championship titles to its name. The event was also attended by the former legend of SL Benfica, Nuno Gomes, who participated virtually in this important moment for both clubs.

The Benfica delegation was represented by the global expansion coordinator, Miguel Reis, and the international projects coordinator, Davide Gomes.

In the presentation, Miguel Reis said: "This is an important partnership for Benfica, as it is a leading club in Egypt, with which we will develop a five-year collaboration, working on its youth development with the permanent presence of Benfica coaches in Cairo.We will also launch an academy project, branded Pyramids FC - powered by Benfica, in line with Benfica's internationalization project."

In this context, Davide Gomes said: "Once again, Benfica has a big challenge ahead of it, as working with a club the size of Pyramids greatly increases our responsibility. Our coaching team, made up of coordinator Francisco Henriques and coach Tiago Marques, is already working with the U14, U15, U17 and U19 age groups, implementing the Benfica methodology, always in collaboration with the local teams. We also have the ambition to develop the various player support departments, thus completing the Formar à Benfica [Benfica style training] model. We are also preparing the implementation of the Football Academies and all the technical support for the operation, helping to increase the base of the Pyramids youth development pyramid. As with all youth football projects, time plays a key role, so it will be crucial for all those involved to understand that results come naturally with daily work and a focus on the player's individual development."

Nuno Gomes, former Benfica player, congratulated Pyramids FC on their partnership. "I'm delighted to see this link between two clubs that are so big in their own countries and also globally. I'm sure that Pyramids will benefit greatly from the methodological work that Benfica and the Portuguese coaches will do, and I'm sure that sooner or later the fruits of this work will appear."

Pyramids FC CEO Mamdouh Eid was delighted to announce this partnership: "Sport Lisboa e Benfica has one of the best - if not the best - academies in the world. This agreement puts Pyramids FC on another level, with the ambition to be the best youth academy in Egypt and to contribute to the development not only of Pyramids FC, but also of the Egyptian national team."

Jaime Pacheco, the Egyptian club's first-team coach, revealed his satisfaction at seeing Pyramids FC's association with a Portuguese club. "I'm delighted to see Benfica partnering with Pyramids, Benfica being a world reference in terms of youth development. The role of the coach in the development process of a player is central, so I'm sure that, given Benfica's capacity at this level, as well as the recognized quality of Portuguese coaches, this partnership will be very important not only for the club but also for Egyptian football."