Burnley Football Club is to expand its reach to all four corners of the British Isles after agreeing strategic partnerships with football clubs in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Scottish Championship club Ayr United, 2007 League of Ireland First Division winners Cobh Ramblers, Portadown of the NIFL Premiership and Cymru North team Llandudno will all become partner clubs of Burnley FC.
Giving the Clarets a footprint across the UK and Ireland, the partner clubs will benefit from Burnley’s football expertise in development and education of their coaches and players, sharing of data across youth academies and sport science and access to tools such as AiSCOUT.
In return Burnley will widen its scouting network for talent identification in the partner clubs’ region, with the most talented young players from each club travelling regularly to Burnley for football camps and assessment when identified.
All clubs’ academies and women’s teams will compete in a summer pre-season games and tournaments, while loan deals for Burnley’s academy players to gain experience at senior levels will also be considered.
Alan Pace, Chairman of Burnley FC, said: “This is an exciting opportunity for us to grow Burnley’s footprint and profile in every corner of the British Isles and benefit from working with some fantastic clubs on our doorstep.
“We look forward to developing a strong working relationship with Ayr United, Cobh Ramblers, Portadown and Llandudno, which will no doubt benefit the clubs, the coaches and their players for many years to come.
“This is very much the first step in our plans to expand the football network of Burnley, build the relevance of our club beyond the North West of England and ensure that Burnley’s academy continues to be a high-performance hotbed for future first team players and international footballers.”
