Next Step FC 1 National Academy 0: Cambodia’s Newest Football Franchise Starts With a Win
In their first ever competitive match as a professional side, Next Step FC managed to beat reigning tier-2 champions National Academy while simultaneously having the biggest attendance of the weekend. It was certainly one emotional weekend.
Who are Next Step FC?
Next Step FC are the brainchild of former Soltilo coach (who lost at the weekend) Charlie Pomroy. Essentially a start-up club, many (including myself) expected them simply to end up cannon-fodder in the CPL 2, the second-tier of Cambodian football. But not Charlie, who told Khmer Nights prior to the match, “We are definitely not here to make up the numbers. Having the first match against the reigning champions will be hard, but intend to do our best and make a great day out for everyone that comes”.
You can read about CPL 2 here.
Next Step FC 1 National Academy 0
Whatever the result, Next Step FC were going to be proud of themselves but in the end a solitary goal from Bruno in the second-half was what set the teams apart. Want to see the goal? Alas the Cambodian Premier League have yet to fix a sponsor or streaming rights, but we can confirm it was a decent one.
Decent or not, the goal and even the result were not the story of the day. That status was reserved by the attendance at the match. Next Step managed to get 1000 + fans through the gate, more than any other club in either division, as well as matching tier-5 clubs in the UK. No mean feat, although most of the tickets were given away to school children. Charlie added “We are about much more than money. We will give tickets away for kids at every match. We want to create an event and atmosphere that other clubs cannot compete with”. Something arguably achieved judging by the attendance, and more importantly, the vibe at the stadium.
What is different about watching Next Step FC?
That anwser can be found by checking out our previous article written about watching football in Cambodia. You can read about that here. Now while we are firm fans of watching the beautiful game within the Kingdom, stadiums are often bereft of refreshments, food and the classic go to for matches – beer.
Next Step FC though have managed to create an actual event, rather than just a run of the mill game. Not only are both grub and drinks available, but volunteers are out selling shirts and the like. This felt like an actual football match.
Sponsoring Next Step FC
Alas running a professional club takes money, so sponsorship is a big deal for the club, something Khmer Nights has decided to partake in! Sadly we didn’t reach the streaming fans of Cambodia, but 1000+ fans got to see our logo, so we are fine with that.
You can check out the Next Step FC website here.
It is still very much early doors, with the club facing an uphill battle to succeed in the professional game, but if week 1 was anything to go by then i really wasn’t a bad start.
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Author: Leon Havana
A trained chef and sports aficionado with extensive experience across South America and Asia. Leon’s culinary creations celebrate local flavors, while his love for sports like football and boxing connects him with local communities.
