The divide between United States soccer and international competitors has always been great, but one youth academy with overseas ties is looking to improve the quality of play on American soil.
World-renowned German soccer club Borussia Dortmund is partnering with BVB International Academy, the official U.S. soccer partner of Borussia Dortmund Youth Academy, in Monroeville to create a new player development academy for both boys and girls soccer players in the Pittsburgh area.
Leading the charge on the coaching front are David Flavius and Thomas Louisy, two individuals who are already well-established in Pittsburgh’s youth soccer club scene.
Flavius’ impact on the Steel City’s soccer community dates back before the turn of the millennium, as he played for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds for eight years and is the organization’s all-time leading goal scorer. Once his playing career came to a close, Flavius started coaching for local clubs such as North Union United and Century FC.
“After I retired, soccer just kept calling,” Flavius said. “I have so much more to give.”
So now Flavius, who will serve as BVB International Academy Pittsburgh’s director of coaching, is excited to turn the page with an organization that has something his aforementioned ones lacked: an international presence
“All those clubs, [I] never found the happiness to do what I do, having the resources to do it,” Flavius said. “Now, you have one of the biggest clubs in the world behind you, [and] have some of the best coaches in the area.”
A number of soccer-specific resources will be made available to BVB International Academy Pittsburgh, including a 170,000 square foot complex at All American Field House that once housed a former racquet and fitness facility, The Club Sport and Health.
Dan Ninemire, the academy’s co-director of business development along with Craig Cozza, has roots in baseball as a former collegiate player who coached at Pitt and runs All American Baseball, a travel baseball program. Cozza and Ninemire acquired the facility in September of 2020 and have since dedicated it to housing the latter’s baseball program, as well as its newest tenant from the soccer pitch.
With three multipurpose fields set aside for soccer, Ninemire is eager to turn things over to both Flavius and Louisy, as well as the individuals they bring aboard their coaching staffs.
“We’ve got great coaches going through the application process, so it’s exciting,” Ninemire said.
While the club is still in its infancy, considering it is just wrapping up its second week of tryouts for players between 6 and 18 years old, parents such as Wendy Fabery are enthralled by what BVB International Academy has to offer their children.
Fabery, whose daughter played under Flavius at Century FC and called him an “inspiration” and “an elite coach”, believes the combination of a familiar leader with an international presence will be beneficial and provide opportunities for all parties involved.
“This is a German-based team that’s coming in here and I think maybe, hopefully, they have a lot more to offer this area,” Fabery said.
Louisy, who will be the boys’ director of soccer development and training, affirmed Fabery’s desires with his confidence in what the club is capable of. A former standout at Baruch College (N.Y.), Louisy is particularly eager to see how Pittsburgh’s younger players — who he finds have long lacked the necessary resources -—can improve under his and Flavius’ tutelage.
“Hopefully, with what we’re doing, we can develop the best players in Western Pennsylvania and the region,” Louisy said. “I’m not saying all these players are going to become professionals, but we’re giving these players a chance to dream bigger.”
Prior to BVB International Academy Pittsburgh’s inception, top players in the region would take their talents to the MLS’ Columbus Crew and Philadelphia Union’s academy teams.
Not only does Louisy hope the homegrown talent can stay in the area for their youth careers, but so long as his academy follows the Dortmund model, it will be a perfect fit for soccer players seeking to make the MLS, earn a college scholarship or simply make their high school squad.
As stated on the club’s website and confirmed by Louisy, BVB International Academy Pittsburgh will look to fully integrate Dortmund’s coaching style.
Coaches will be put through an accreditation process, where they use the German club’s training philosophy and methodology in an attempt to replicate what young players at the Borussia Dortmund Academy in Germany receive on a daily basis.
“This is very important for [the] development of soccer in Western Pennsylvania and the entire region because of the model [Dortmund] offers,” Louisy said. “When we were approached about this, it was the total package to prepare players to get to whatever level they want to.”
Of course, the benefits of having a new facility where players can train after school and 365 days a year, regardless of weather, cannot be understated. But Louisy believes it will take more than amenities to make BVB International Academy successful.
Louisy called the pairing of Dortmund and Pittsburgh a “match made in heaven” not just because the soccer team’s colors are the same as all of the Steel City’s professional sports teams’, but because they are both towns full of “hard-working, blue-collar people.”
Yet for players who have the skills and want to one day leave the Pittsburgh area, Louisy is confident BVB International Academy can provide exposure to clubs outside the United States.
With a state-of-the-art facility, Dortmund-educated coaches and a region that Louisy said produces one or two “special players” every year, BVB International Academy has all the tools to be uniquely successful in Pittsburgh.
“I just want to see us change the landscape of soccer and make it more open for so many kids,” Louisy said. “We do see this program as a program we intend to take to the next level, and I see the goal is always to do things that haven’t been done.”
Andrew Destin: adestin@post-gazette.com and Twitter @AndrewDestin1.
First Published: June 10, 2021, 2:08 p.m.
Updated: June 10, 2021, 4:00 p.m.
