The KIA Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال کیا) is an Iranian youth
football academy
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...
that was established by
Mehdi Mahdavikia
Mehdi Mahdavikia ( fa, ; born 24 July 1977) is an Iranian professional football coach and former player usually played as a right winger or right back.
He is currently under contract by Hamburger SV as a youth coach, and also manages his own ...
in 2015 in southeastern
Tehran
Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
.
German magazine ''
11 Freunde
11 Freunde (German for ''11 friends'') is a monthly German sports magazine.
The magazine was founded in 2000 by Reinaldo Coddou H. and Philipp Köster. Köster is also its editor-in-chief. It is published monthly in Berlin.
The magazine sees its ...
'' has described it as "the best football academy" in Iran, and unique in terms of being dedicated to "sustainable, conceptual youth work".
The club follows the
TSG 1899 Hoffenheim-model, i.e. starting at grassroots-level before developing into a team that can enter the professional leagues.
Each year, the club scouts more than a thousand players from all across the country and after trials, only retains top 25 talents.
KIA has shown remarkable results since its foundation and frequently travels to Europe in order to play against renowned opponents.
Current squads
First Team
Current staff
Honours
Domestic league competitions
International
References
External links
Official websiteKIA Football Academy – Tehran Football Committee{{DEFAULTSORT:KIA Football Academy
Football academies in Iran
Football clubs in Iran
2015 establishments in Iran
Association football clubs established in 2015