KIA Football Academy

The KIA Football Club (Persian: باشگاه فوتبال کیا), commonly known as KIA FC, is an Iranian youth football academy that was established by Mehdi Mahdavikia in 2015 in southeastern Tehran.[1]

KIA Academy
Full nameKIA Football Academy
Founded2015 (2015)
GroundMadaran Stadium
Tehran, Iran
Coordinates35.6469382°N 51.452926°W / 35.6469382; -51.452926
ChairmanMehdi Mahdavikia
CoachHadi Mahdavikia
LeagueIran Football's 3rd Division
First colours
Second colours

German magazine 11 Freunde has described it as "the best football academy" in Iran, and unique in terms of being dedicated to "sustainable, conceptual youth work".[1] The club follows the TSG 1899 Hoffenheim-model, i.e. starting at grassroots-level before developing into a team that can enter the professional leagues.[2] Each year, the club scouts more than a thousand players from all across the country and after trials, only retains top 25 talents.[3]

KIA has shown remarkable results since its foundation and frequently travels to Europe in order to play against renowned opponents.[1]

Current squads
As of 5 September 2023

First Team

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  IRN Mehdi Kord
22 GK  IRN Emad Aram
90 GK  IRN Seyed Aria Hosseinifar
2 DF  IRN Aref Momen Fiouj
4 DF  IRN Mehrshad Zare
23 DF  IRN Sina Ghasemi
40 DF  IRN Amirreza Firouzbakht
6 MF  IRN Sobhan Kamalvand
11 MF  IRN Sattar Rajaeinejad
14 MF  IRN Parsa Baghalian
18 MF  IRN Ali Azadmehr
20 MF  IRN Ali Hosseinzadeh
80 MF  IRN Fardin Bahri
No. Pos. Nation Player
8 FW  IRN Sajad Khademi
9 FW  IRN Arshia Mahdavikia (captain)
12 FW  IRN Abolfazl Sokhtanloo
70 FW  IRN Reza Mirzaeian
77 FW  IRN Abolfazl Rezaei
88 FW  IRN Sina Elami
96 FW  IRN Amirhossein Reyvandi
97 FW  IRN Amirreza Eslamtalab

Current staff
Mehdi MahdavikiaAcademy Manager
Hadi MahdavikiaU14 Head Coach

Honours

Domestic league competitions
League Title(s) Season(s)
U14National Premier LeagueWinners (1)2018–2019
Tehran Premier LeagueWinners (2)2016–2017, 2017–2018
U16Tehran 1st Division LeagueWinners (1)2016–2017

International
Cup Title(s) Year(s)
Norway CupU13Runners-up (2)2015,[4] 2016
U11Winners (1)2015[5]
Cordial CupU13Winners (2)2018,[6] 2019[7]
U11Runners-up (1)2015[4]
Deutsches Fußball InternatU12Runners-up (1)2016[8]
Bassevelde CupU13Winners (1)2019[9]

References
  1. Steffen Weiß (12 February 2017), "Zwischen Kult und Chaos", 11 Freunde (in German), archived from the original on 12 February 2017, retrieved 26 January 2018
  2. "مهدوی کیا تیم داری می کند، مثل هوفنهایم!" (in Persian). Khabar Online. 13 April 2015. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
  3. "Mondial Pupilles. Les Iraniens veulent monter en puissance", Ouest-France (in French), 10 May 2018, retrieved 26 January 2018
  4. "Kia Academy Comes 2nd at Norway Cup", Tasnim News Agency, 31 July 2015, retrieved 26 January 2018
  5. "Inviterte gullvinnerne fra Iran på gratis pizza i Drøbak", psv.nl (in Norwegian), 2 August 2015, retrieved 11 July 2019
  6. "Kia Football Academy U13 win Cordial Cup", Tehran Times, 22 May 2018, retrieved 26 January 2018
  7. "KIA U-13 Football Academy Wins Cordail Cup", Tasnim News Agency, 11 June 2019, retrieved 11 June 2019
  8. "Bayern München macht das Triple perfekt!", rosenheim24.de (in German), 12 June 2016, retrieved 11 June 2019
  9. "PSV O13 vierde op toernooi, Van Duiven eist hoofdrol op bij O14", psv.nl (in Dutch), 3 July 2019, retrieved 11 July 2019
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