Former winner of 'The
Chance' and Nike Academy player builds career at Celtic Football Club.
In
early 2012, more than one hundred thousand hopefuls from around the world
entered ‘The Chance,’ Nike’s search for unsigned football talent. The journey
to find the best among these players encompassed more than 50 regional finals,
the week-long global finals held at FC Barcelona, and a four-week
once-in-a-lifetime football tour that gave the top 16 players an opportunity to
compete against teams from U.S. Soccer, Manchester United and Juventus.
Now
the winners have been announced, and Marco Di Lauro of Italy, Gonzalo Balbi of
Spain and Kevin Salazar of Colombia, have joined the Nike Academy to train for
the rest of the season in their bid to become professional footballers. All
three can take huge inspiration from young footballer and Nike Academy graduate
Tom Rogic.
In
the winter of 2011, Rogic, a talented Australian midfielder, arrived in the
U.K. to take part in The Chance — hoping to stand out among thousands of
entrants.
There,
Rogic caught the eye of Nike Academy Director of Football Jimmy Gilligan and
his coaching team, making the top eight of The Chance 2011 Final and winning a
place in the Nike Academy – living, training and playing as an elite footballer
for a year.
After,
Rogic was scouted and signed by the Central Coast Mariners back in his native
Australia. His journey didn’t stop there. This January he was signed by the
famous Celtic Football Club. In his debut game, Rogic was named
man-of-the-match for the Glasgow giants. “I know I am at one of the biggest
clubs in the world today because of the opportunity I had with The Chance,”
Rogic says.
“If
you’d told me, when I was going through 'The Chance,' that a year or 18 months
later I’d be playing for the Celtic first team, I wouldn’t have believed you.
My advice to the winners of this year’s 'The Chance' is to not give up, because
you don’t know what can happen.
“The
past 12 months have been amazing for me and it’s really just the beginning,”
Rogic continues. “I feel very privileged to be a part of this football club and
hopefully I can continue to progress.”
Neil
Lennon, Manager of Celtic Football Club, says: “Tom is tall, elegant, has quick
feet, excellent technique, and an eye for a goal. He has taken full advantage
of the opportunity that Nike’s 'The Chance' gave him; he can be very proud
about what he has achieved.”
The
future for the three winners of this year’s 'The Chance' is unknown, but you
can bet they’d happily follow in Rogic’s footsteps 18 months from now.
Watch the documentary
below about Tom Rogic and the developing careers of the other Chance 2011 winners.
