Soccer Legend Zico Opens Soccer Academy in Danbury, Connecticut

"This is a fantastic facility," he said while standing inside it Thursday. "It's very similar to the one we had when I coached in Japan." Zico said he looked at a number of cities for the academy, including Boston, Atlanta and Orlando, but decided the dome in Danbury is the perfect venue for year-round training.

Despite the thunder and drenching rains that hit the city Thursday, it was dry and calm inside the dome. "You can do any kind of training here year-round without having to worry about the weather," he said. "It's a real credit to the people who made this happen."

Fabio Malavazzi, marketing director for the academy, said classes will be held up to three times a week throughout the year for both youth players and their coaches. He said they are hoping to bring coaches from around the world to work with local players, as well as scouts for various soccer teams and colleges.

"This will be a great opportunity for kids in the area who are interested in soccer," he said. "The area already has some great soccer programs, and we are hoping to complement that."

Dome director Kirk Bamford said the academy is the kind of "world-class programing that we want to provide in our world-class facility." Zico will be back at the dome in August for the grand opening of the academy, he said.

Source: Dirk Perrefort, http://www.newstimes.com