Real de Banjul Football Club is delighted to announce a ground-breaking partnership with Estonian giants Paide Linnameeskond.

The 12-time Gambian league champions have signed a long-term partnership with the club nicknamed Eesti Barcelona (Estonian Barcelona) with the agreement aimed at developing young players and preparing them for a professional career in Europe.

Paide was the club that gave a European chance to former Real de Banjul players in striker Alassana Jatta and defender Muhammed Sanneh who both took the next steps to move to Viborg FF in Denmark and FC Baník Ostrava in Czech Republic respectively.

The partnership was signed on Monday after fruitful meetings at Kerr Real where the two Clubs saw the need to further their bilateral relations.

William Abraham, President of Real de Banjul says the partnership is to further strengthen the relationship between both clubs and help improve the capacity and standards of the team.

“We are happy to sign this partnership with Paide. It is a club on the rise and becoming a force to be reckon with in Estonia. They share the same values and ideas with us as a football club and that’s why we see the need to enter into this long-term partnership,” Abraham said.

He added: “We have seen them quickly develop the players we sent to them and within a period of two years, seen them sell them and both taking huge career steps and progress, so that shows us that Paide Linnameeskond is the right club for us and the right partners.”

Veiko Veskimäe, President of Paide Linnameeskond said: “The priority of Paide Linnameeskond is primarily the development of Estonian young players, so that the boys of our own club can reach the Estonian youth teams and the senior national team and thus have an opportunity for a career abroad.”

“At the same time, we see the development of young foreign talents and the realization of their player rights as one of the prerequisites for achieving the club’s sporting goals and its sustainable management. Therefore, in recent years we have made a great contribution in creating a suitable environment for the development of young players and at the same time we have paid attention to maximally support young players from other cultural backgrounds in adapting to local life in Estonia.”

“By concluding a cooperation agreement with Real de Banjul, we want to take the next important step in scouting foreign players. Scouting them very early and spotting those talents at a young age enables us to support their development even before coming to Estonia and thus speed up their adaptation to the requirements necessary to succeed in European football,” he said.

Veskimäe added: “Real de Banjul is an excellent partner that has made significant efforts in recent years to build its own youth system and has made significant investments in the necessary infrastructure. Their training center (Live Your Dream Sports Academy) in Basori is already at a good level and even exceptional in the context of the region.”

The partnership was facilitated by Modou Lamin Beyai, CEO of Modoustic Sports Management & PR who was happy bringing the two clubs together for the betterment of Gambian football.

“I’m elated seeing this through and I thank both Clubs for trusting me with this in bringing them together. This partnership will further help develop Gambian football at large and as well expose our talented footballers.”

Paide Linnameeskond are set for their second successive season playing in European club competition and will face Polish club Śląsk Wrocław in the 1st round qualifying match of the 2021/22 UEFA Europa Conference League in two weeks’ time.

About Paide Linnameeskond

Paide Linnameeskond is a football club based in Paide, Estonia, that competes in the Premium Liiga, the top flight of Estonian football. The club’s home ground is Paide linnastaadion. Founded in 2004, the club has played in the Meistriliiga since 2009 and have never been relegated from the Estonian top division.