Message From The Founder
The mission of the American Football Academy is to promote youth and amateur sports competition within the UAE and surrounding Gulf States by introducing young, aspiring athletes to the game of American rules football. Students 7-18 years of age will receive formal classroom instruction, as well as on-the-field training and physical conditioning, inclusive of the basic fundamentals, principles, skills and techniques of the game of football.
Sami Alhashmi,
Director
Mission of AFA
The mission of the American Football Academy is two-fold: (a) To offer aspiring young athletes the opportunity to learn the game of American Rules Football (under the most ideal conditions possible) by fostering youth and amateur sports competition within the UAE, and (b) Educational, in that children will receive both formal classroom instruction, as well as on-the-field training and physical conditioning inclusive of the basic fundamentals, principles, skills and techniques of the game of football which will, in turn, enable them to progressively advance to higher levels of competition. Playing organized team sports such as football develops, sharpens, and refines existing athletic skills while simultaneously challenging young, intuitive minds and forging strong moral character. It requires teamwork and yet demands exceptional individual athletic performance. It motivates players to excel and to be the best they can be; lays the basic foundation upon which our children learn to be competitive; and provides them with the knowledge, training, courage and self-confidence which will in turn enable them to successfully compete against others in an ever-changing world.
Philosophy
Education is the acknowledged key to success, and turning dreams into reality is what coaching is all about. Our goal, then, is to provide a wholesome and enjoyable learning experience for all youths interested in participating in American style football while simultaneously teaching the values of teamwork, good sportsmanship and fair play; to encourage players to maintain satisfactory grades in school and to emphasize the importance of maintaining a proper balance between scholastic and athletic endeavors; to provide a well organized, safe, and personally rewarding experience that is appreciated and favorably received by the parents of the community; to inspire youth, regardless of race, color, creed, or national origin, to practice the ideals of good health, citizenship and character; and to bring the youth of the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Europe and the Pacific Rim, as well as the United States, closer together by means of friendly athletic competition entirely free of adult lust for glory and/or political interference.
And in this regard, we believe that sports and academia are two rather distinct yet inseparable schools of thought, each complimenting and enhancing the other, with virtually identical developmental goals. We further believe that a healthy child is one who exercises both mind and body and that to limit instruction to either academics or athletics, is to restrict the developmental and learning process, thereby affording the child an incomplete and thus inadequate education. Both promote and build very desirable traits which, when correctly instilled and properly applied, not only serve to enhance one another, but will ultimately guide the child on the path to elemental self-reliance as a productive member of society.
We are also extremely proud of the fact that no other academy, school or college, including those located in the United States, offer the same unique combination of curriculum including formal classroom and on-the-field physical training and conditioning. And last but not least, we believe that the true measure of success is not determined by academic degrees nor dependent upon numbers in the won-loss column, but rather by the fundamentals, values, and principles taught, learned, and applied as they progress through life ... and both academics and athletics play an increasingly important role in the developmental stage of a child’s future.
* The American Football Academy is licensed as an educational sports academy by the Department of Economics, Dubai, UAE, and is fully accredited and endorsed by the International Accreditation Commission for Athletic Achievement.