Academy

Charlton Athletic academy call-ups

In July 2006, two youth academy players Atif Sachak and Kareem Kerai, were selected for a pre-season two-week academy and community programmes at Premier League club’s Charlton Athletic youth academy in a bid to enhance their football skills. A few days later, both the players were drafted into Charlton’s under-13 side for a match against a visiting American club.

Qatar tours

In September 2008, the youth team was invited to Qatar on a week-long tour to play matches against the youth teams of Al-Ahli and Al Sadd, as well as train at the prestigious Aspire Academy for Sports Excellence. The tour was a successful one, with Karachi United winning 3-1 against Al-Ahli’s U-17 team. They also drew 2-2 against Al Sadd.

In September 2011, it was invited again to Qatar on a five-day tour to train and play matches versus Aspire Academy, Al Sadd and other local clubs. The highlight of the tour was a 2-2 draw against Aspire Academy, which is considered one of the world’s top schools for sporting excellence.

Barcelona tour

In February 2017, Karachi United became the first Pakistani club to tour Spanish giants FC Barcelona. During their week-long tour, the Karachi United squad, comprising 53 people (44 players and 9 officials), was given six coaching sessions by coaches from FCB, where they learnt about the FCB training philosophy and their values. The squad was housed at the Marcet Fundacion, a renowned Catalonian youth set-up through whose ranks came players such as Keylor Navas. During their stay, Karachi United’s four teams (two under-13 teams, with one of the teams comprising both boys and girls, and two under-16) played over 15 matches against local opposition. The squad also visited La Masia, the famed FC Barcelona Youth Academy and observed a number of the FCB youth boys and girls teams’ matches. Having earlier also visited the FCB Museum and Camp Nou, they wrapped up their tour by watching FC Barcelona beat Leganes 2-1 in La Liga, courtesy of a late Lionel Messi penalty.

Aspire bilateral series

KU’s youth team was invited to play a four-match bilateral series against Aspire Academy in Doha in March 2019. The under-12 side managed to win all four matches in the series, grabbing a 4-2 win in the first game and winning the second and third fixtures 4-0. It won the fourth match 5-3 on penalty shootout after a goalless draw. The under-11 team won their first game 4-1, but lost their second and third fixtures 3-4 and 1-2. It won the fourth match 3-0, and was thus awarded the series victory, courtesy of aggregate results.

Aspire tri-series Football Tournament

In November 2019, KU was yet again invited by the Aspire Academy to participate in a tri-series football tournament. KU bagged the tri-series title in U-12 and U-11 categories by winning against Turkish club Fenerbahce SK and Aspire Academy, respectively.

Aspire Friendly Series 2023

In March 2023, KU was once again invited by the Aspire Academy to Doha for a 5 day tour to participate in a 3-match friendly series between the U-11 and U-12 teams. KU won the series in the U-12 category by 2-1, and lost in the U-11 category by 1-2. Karachi United also visited the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium where they watched Al Sadd in the Emir Cup.