By Madina Toure
World Cup champion and top goal scorer for the Spanish National Soccer Team David Villa is bringing his DV7 Soccer Academy Spanish soccer methods to Queens College’s Summer Camp.
The sessions, starting July 25 and Aug. 1, will be directed by Josep Gombau Balaguer, a professional soccer coach and director of Villa’s DV7 Academy. Villa will participate in a training session with each group of children, giving them feedback on their playing.
Speaking at the college April 13, Villa, who is also captain of the New York City Football Club, said he would pass on what he has learned in his career.
“In this camp I want to teach the children the concepts and the values that I have learned throughout my soccer career,” he said. “It is an unparalleled and special opportunity to be able to begin this project in such a diverse and soccer-passionate community as Queens.”
Camp sessions will run from July 25-29 and Aug. 1-5 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. The program costs $695 per week. To register, go to queen
Each participant will receive two full DV7 Soccer Academy kits, including jerseys, shorts and socks; an Adidas mini soccer ball signed by David Villa; and a certificate of completion for David Villa’s DV7 Soccer Academy @ Queens College Summer Camp 2016.
Queens College President Félix Matos Rodríguez said the college’s summer camp has “enriched the lives of tens of thousands of children” through instruction in sports as well as in computers, math, reading, writing, science, theater and dance.
“We are honored that David Villa’s DV7 Soccer Academy sees the value of having a partnership with the college, for just as we take great pride in having some of the world’s finest faculty in our classrooms, we are equally proud to be able to offer our campers the absolute best in soccer instruction,” Rodríguez said.
This year Villa started to develop youth academies to demonstrate the culture and growth of soccer in the United States. The first DV7 Soccer Academy opened last January in Bayamón, Puerto Rico.
State Assemblyman Francisco Moya (D-Jackson Heights), who facilitated Villa’s relationship with Queens College, said he is a huge soccer fan who sees the difference the sport can make for youth.
“Not only am I a die-hard soccer fan that sees the potential to help young people throughout Queens by learning the world’s beautiful game, I could not pick two organizations I believe in more to unite on this effort,” Moya said.
Reach reporter Madina Toure by e-mail at mtour
