The long-awaited football academy in Tseung Kwan O has received a HK$97 million funding boost and should be ready by 2010, the Hong Kong Football Association revealed yesterday. 'We have discussed with the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) and they have agreed to increase the budget,' said HKFA chairman Brian Leung Hung-tak. The new HK$200 million budget for the facility includes an expansion of the original plan. The number of pitches will be increased to 10 from the original five and more quarters will be built to accommodate players. 'Development of an academy is crucial to the future of Hong Kong football and we will do our best to make it happen,' Leung said. Plans to build a football academy on the landfill site at Tseung Kwan O New Town started in 2003 and the HKJC originally agreed to foot the construction bill with a budget of HK$103 million. 'Now the Jockey Club has also agreed to support the cost for the first five years, which makes the project more feasible, but in a long run we still need to sort out the financing problem of running the academy,' said Leung. Meanwhile, the Hong Kong League Selection will take on Penarol of Uruguay on the opening day of the Wing Lung Bank Lunar New Year Cup tournament, to be held at Hong Kong Stadium on February 7 and 10. The other match will feature Croatia's Hajduk Split and Ulsan Hyundai of South Korea. Winners will meet each other in the title match while the losing sides will meet in the third-place play-off.
