With teams preparing for the new 2023/24 season and a return to competitive action, St. George’s Park was proud to host a number of pre-season camps at its Staffordshire facility, which included a record number of six matches on site.
Ten teams enjoyed camps at the home of England’s national teams in total, including Benfica, AS Monaco, Real Betis, Stade Rennias and Mahd Academy as well as English sides West Bromwich Albion, Peterborough United, Sheffield United (U18s and U23s) and Stevenage.
The facility’s elite-pitches hosted 90 hours of pitch time, while teams benefited from a collective 70 hours' usage of SGP’s performance facilities; including the hydrotherapy suite, strength and conditioning gym and cryotherapy chamber.
Andy Savery, SGP General Manager, said: “The highlight of the pre-season programme has undoubtedly been the number of friendly fixtures we’ve hosted such as Monaco vs Real Betis, but games also included travelling opposition from Southampton, Luton Town and Nottingham Forest.
“The pitches have been well praised by teams, as have the new dedicated areas for gaming and leisure in the hotel and teqball/basketball in the Futsal hall, plus there was high satisfaction with the hotel food and accommodation.
“Every department has pulled together and deserves credit for this success, and it’s great to see four teams already enquiring about returning in 2024.”
With the site now in its 11th year since opening, the vastly experienced team has gained a thorough understanding of the needs of elite sport, providing bespoke training camps to suit the requirements of each team.
An example of this is the added option for visiting teams to now be able to request to host a friendly fixture as part of their pre-season package. Previously the onus was on the club to make their own plans, but they can now rely on The FA’s experienced account team to organise suitable opposition to face either on-site at St. George’s Park, or at a nearby stadium.
England’s training home also has the unique ability to host several teams at any one time, proving to be the venue of choice for managers looking to integrate new players to their squads and imprint their football philosophy.
The quiet, secure 300-acre site has also hosted Barcelona, Ajax, Crystal Palace, Brentford, England Cricket and England Rugby Union to name but a few in recent years.
For more information on the football offer at St. George’s Park, please click here
