Bundesliga Dream: Visitors from Thailand at the PRA
Group of Thai youngsters spend a week training at the academy
Youth
05.10.2025, 10:00
A week of training like professional footballers – that’s a dream for many young footballers. For a group of U17 players from Thailand, that dream became reality as part of the DFL’s “Bundesliga Dream” project, which took part in Augsburg for the third time.
The players, who had been selected in Thailand by representatives from various German clubs, arrived in the Fuggerstadt on Monday morning and received a warm welcome at the Paul-Renz-Akademie. Their first training session followed soon after, before a tough first test on Tuesday: a friendly against VfB Stuttgart’s U16s. Despite a narrow 2-1 defeat, the visitors impressed with a strong performance and took away valuable lessons about areas for improvement – both technically and tactically.
Tactics, training, theory
Their week at the PRA wasn’t limited to on-pitch training. The programme also included theory sessions and tactical work, with special presentations on nutrition and sports psychology. Both topics are key aspects of high-performance sport, with physical and mental wellbeing playing a decisive role in player development.
Thursday evening brought another highlight – a friendly against a mixed FCA side made up of U15, U16 and U17 players. After several intense training sessions and new experiences, the Thai visitors rose to the occasion, edging an entertaining encounter 3-2.
Gallery: Bundesliga-Dream-3.0
Friday’s schedule featured a special moment as the group visited the WWK ARENA. The youngsters were given a stadium tour, a look behind the scenes and their own FCA shirts.
Over the weekend, the group explored Augsburg and the surrounding area and even took part in a different kind of football: footgolf – a combination of football and golf. They also showed their support from the stands, cheering on FCA’s U19s in their home match against SpVgg Unterhaching at the academy.
After an eventful week in Augsburg, the team travelled on to Frankfurt to continue their German adventure and gain further experience.
