Management of football academies in Turkey: The player’s perspective

The performance of football academies is contingent upon the collaboration of various internal and external stakeholders. In this context, considering football players as crucial internal stakeholders in club-based football academies, the current research explores, from the viewpoints of elite players, the factors impacting the efficiency of management in Turkish football academies. Using the system theory approach as its theoretical framework, the specific focus was on describing the essential requisites and services within the input, process, feedback, output, and environmental aspects of the football academy management system. Subsequently, the study aimed to propose practical solutions to enhance various facets of the football academy management in Türkiye. Fifteen male participants, aged between 19 and 36 years old, were selected among active professional players competing in the top division of Türkiye (Süper Lig) who had also represented the Turkish National Teams in at least one official game above the U18 level during their careers. The data was obtained through semi-structured interviews and analysed using qualitative content analysis. According to the results, the effective selection of talented players, high-quality coaching, parents’ education, providing more competitive game experience, and resolving transition challenges to senior teams were critical for the success of football academies. The findings also highlighted key suggestions for the improvement of the overall performance of academies in Türkiye.