SA Stars Shine in Spain: Next Gen Draft Winners Complete Dream Training Camp With LALIGA & EA SPORTS FC

Eight young footballers from South Africa have just returned from the trip of a lifetime — a 10-day elite football and cultural camp in Madrid, Spain — after being selected as winners of the LALIGA x EA SPORTS Next Gen Draft Tournament held in Rustenburg earlier this year. The camp, part of the EA SPORTS FC FUTURES initiative, brought together 40 young players from around the world for intensive training, competitive matches, and unforgettable experiences inside one of football’s most iconic environments.

The Rustenburg tournament saw four boys and four girls rise above the rest to earn their place in the exclusive development program. Now, LALIGA is thrilled to share an update on the young stars’ journey — including their time on the pitch and behind the scenes in Spain.

Below is the official press release detailing this unique global experience:

Next Gen Draft Winners Enjoy a Unique Experience in Spain with LALIGA and EA SPORTS FC

The 40 young talents selected in Guatemala, South Africa, UAE, USA, and Vietnam participated in a development camp in Madrid, including training sessions, matches, and cultural experiences alongside LALIGA and its clubs

Madrid, 1 June 2025 – After several months of evaluation and qualifying stages held across different parts of the world, the winners of the international Next Gen Draft program have arrived in Spain to enjoy an unforgettable experience. This initiative, promoted by LALIGA and EA SPORTS as part of the EA SPORTS FC FUTURES social impact project, offers promising young footballers a unique reward experience combining training, football, and cultural immersion at the heart of the LALIGA ecosystem.

The winners, representing eleven different nationalities, were selected after passing the different phases in their respective countries: Guatemala City (Guatemala), Rustenburg (South Africa), Dubai (UAE), New York (USA), and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam). To enter the competition, candidates were selected through the various LALIGA academies around the world, in collaboration with local partners. The selection process took into account not only sporting criteria, but also social factors. Of these, eight participants per region (four boys and four girls) were rewarded with an exclusive 10-day camp in Madrid, combining high-level training sessions, matches against youth teams from LALIGA EA SPORTS clubs, specific training modules, and visits to iconic Spanish soccer locations.

Juan Florit, Head of Sports Projects at LALIGA, emphasized the core goal of the program:
“This final phase in Spain aimed to inspire and create new opportunities for these young players both on and off the pitch. Our main goal was to instill in them the values of sport and LALIGA, offering the right educational and sporting stimuli through training and competition, combined with cultural and educational activities related to LALIGA and its clubs.”

The camp took place from 26 May to 4 June at the Los Ángeles de San Rafael sports complex, Atlético de Madrid’s training ground. The schedule included technical and tactical sessions based on the LALIGA Academy methodology, performance analysis workshops, individual development activities, and leisure time to foster team bonding.

In addition to the high-level training, the young players explored the best of what Madrid had to offer. Highlights included a tour of the LALIGA headquarters, a visit to LEGENDS, The Home of Football, dining at LALIGA TWENTYNINE’S, and a special tour of the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

On the pitch, the participants tested their skills against the youth sides of Atlético de Madrid, CD Leganés, and Rayo Vallecano, giving them a taste of elite Spanish football and valuable match experience.

The Next Gen Draft is part of EA SPORTS FC FUTURES, a global platform supporting grassroots and community football development in over ten countries. The program emphasizes safe play spaces, access to technical training, and values-based education through sport. Recent infrastructure upgrades have taken place in Medellín (Colombia), São Paulo (Brazil), and several storm-damaged sites in Spain’s Valencian Community.

This joint initiative by LALIGA and EA SPORTS is a testament to their shared commitment to empowering the next generation of footballers, building bridges across cultures, and ensuring that the future of football is inclusive, global, and forward-thinking.

About LALIGA
LALIGA is the largest football ecosystem in the world, organizing professional football competitions in Spain. It includes the 20 clubs in LALIGA EA SPORTS and 22 in LALIGA HYPERMOTION. With over 247 million global followers, LALIGA boasts the most extensive international network in professional sports. Its social work is conducted through the LALIGA FOUNDATION, and it was the first football league to launch a competition for intellectually challenged athletes: LALIGA GENUINE.