Zig Zag and Jamie Vardy’s V9 Academy sign TV documentary deal
May 10, 2016
Independent TV Production Company Zig Zag Productions has announced an agreement with Leicester City and England striker Jamie Vardy’s V9 Academy to produce a TV documentary series.
‘Jamie Vardy’s Having an Academy’ (w/t) (3 x 60’) will follow the hottest name in English football as he seeks to discover non league talent and promote them to the professional game whilst providing them with a unique educational experience into what it takes to play at the sport’s top level.
The V9 Academy will hold its first intake of players in May 2017 at Manchester City FC’s training complex. The academy will host 42 successful applicants who will be split into 3 teams of 14 players for a 5-day residential programme.
The series will provide ‘behind the scenes’ insight into how coaching, sport science, fitness methodology, talent identification and mental training is carried out at the elite level. It will also follow the stories of the hopefuls in the build up to their time in the V9 Academy and provide and insight into Jamie’s time in non league football.
Each successful applicant will be evaluated technically, tactically, physically and mentally and will leave the academy with an individual development plan to help progress their game beyond the academy.
Scouts from professional clubs will also be running the rule over the players and for those successful students who secure a professional contract, Key Sports Management, one of the UK’s leading football management companies and co founders of the V9 Academy will broker a contract.
The documentary series is the first fruits of a development deal with Fleet Street Sport & Media Group the media services business led by former international footballer and Sunderland FC chairman Niall Quinn MBE.
“I’m looking forward to working with the Zig Zag Productions team on the documentary about the V9 Academy. I hope the series encourages would be footballers to give it another go and keep on fighting like I did” said Jamie Vardy, co founder V9 Academy.
“Jamie Vardy is the biggest success in world football at the moment, having risen from a non league player to becoming a Premier League champion with Leicester City. He’s now launching his own Academy to help players rise up from the non league to become elite professionals and Zig Zag will be there to film the journey” said Danny Fenton, CEO Zig Zag Productions.
‘Jamie Vardy’s Having an Academy’ (w/t) is the latest in a series of TV sports projects from Zig Zag Productions which includes ‘Fashanu’s Football Challenge’ (Bravo), Eddie Jordan’s Bad Boy Racers’ (Channel 5), ‘The Premier League’s Most Amazing Moments’ (BBC Three) and ‘Football Years’ (Sky One).