The USM Alger Centre d'entraînement et de formation is the

training ground A training ground is an area where professional association football teams prepare for matches, with activities primarily concentrating on skills and fitness. They also sometimes form part of a club's youth system, as clubs consider it important ...

and

academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

base of

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club

USM Alger Union Sportive de la Médina d'Alger (); known as USM Alger or simply USMA for short, is a Association football, football club based in the inner suburbs of Algiers. The club was founded in 1937 and its colours are red and black. Their home sta ...

. The club is located in Ain Benian in the western suburbs of

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

Construction

The centre covers over and includes a natural grass pitch and a synthetic pitch. Its official opening is scheduled for 2022. In July 2011, the club began training center construction. Progress was halted in 2015 due to the priority of improvised housing. The project's lead architect based the design on the plans created by

Joan Gamper Hans Max Gamper-Haessig (; 22 November 1877 – 30 July 1930), commonly known as Joan Gamper (), was a Swiss-born football executive and versatile athlete. He founded football clubs in Switzerland and Spain, most notably Barcelona and Zürich. ...

for

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

's training center. On October 13, 2018, the first foundation stone was laid and the start of construction was announced in a ceremony organized by the management of

; the Algerian Minister of Youth and Sport, Mohamed Hattab; and the Wali of

, Abdelkader Zoukh. The professional training center of USMA covers over 3 hectares. The site offers two football pitches: one with synthetic turf from the last generation and the other with a natural hybrid grass, which is optimal for intensive use. The center will house administrative, educational and catering facilities, as well as accommodations, an official club shop, and relaxation areas. On July 6, 2020, USM Alger singe a two-year contract with Aïn Benian Hotel and Catering School until the completion of the work of the training center, The contract will allow USM Alger to use the stadium, the swimming pool, the weight room, the hotel, the sports hall, the offices and the recovery and massage room. On March 15, 2021, the construction works of USM Alger's training center were officially launched, central technical director and production Rachid Douh stated that the plot contains 30,000 square meters, and will house the club's headquarters two playgrounds inside the hall two changing rooms and two playgrounds with artificial grass. The works will be carried out by EPE Batimetal. In January 2023, the company in charge of the completion announced the end of the first part of the works, which is the structure of the main building that will be the club's headquarters, and it is the largest in the project. On August 9, 2023 as the buildings took shape, USMA management issued a nationwide tender for the installation of five football fields. It is a large natural grass pitch which will be used mainly for training the first team, three smaller synthetic pitches, as well as two small indoor pitches.

Project's resumption

On October 31, 2024, USM Alger announced news of its training center under construction, which was relaunched this season. However, after the construction works for the buildings were carried out, the site remained in a state of disrepair again for a little over a year. Cosider is the company responsible for the project, the delivery date of which has not been set. Project director said regular meetings have been held with President Sahebane since he took office. Since July, we have made significant progress, overcoming many obstacles thanks to the efforts of the project’s design office. Once completed, the center will be able to accommodate 162 trainees, including 62 residents and 100 externals. The capacity of its restaurant will be 150 seats, and the center will be equipped with 62 rooms, with a total of 120 beds distributed between the different training units and four VIP rooms. The project also includes several revenue-generating infrastructures for the club, such as a shop that can accommodate 50 customers, a material store for 26 people, a 55-seat cafeteria, and a fast food area that can accommodate up to 40 people. On May 14, 2025, Transport Minister Saïd Sayoud held a meeting to speed up construction of USMA’s training center in Aïn Benian. He instructed officials to remove all obstacles to ensure its delivery by the 2025–26 season. Launched five years ago, the project had faced significant bureaucratic delays. The minister’s direct involvement marks a major turning point. Supporters now hope to finally see their club with its own training center.

Construction

Project's resumption

Handover and opening

Facilities

References