Africa's Greatest Football Clubs: Asec Mimosa


By Joburg Post

Respected Cote d’voire internationals Gervihno, Salomon Kalou and the Toure brothers are household names in the football world. They have won a number of trophies both at international and local level between them. Their talents have taken them all over the world, and they have represented the African continent with pride over the years. But it all started at the renowned Asec Mimosa Sol Beni Academy, where their skills were sharpened and their love for the beautiful game deepened.

Asec Mimosa has transformed the lives of many families and has given talented youngsters an opportunity to escape poverty and other social ills through football. The Abidjan based giants not only focus on the player’s football skills, but they also equip their youth players with life skills and instill discipline in them from a young age. The club believes in hard work, humility and a positive attitude, which examples why most of their youth academy graduates have enjoyed successful careers in some of world’s best leagues. The club’s ability to produce world class players is also one of the reasons why they are loved and supported by the local community. Asec Mimosa is also respected worldwide for unearthing some of the best talent to come out of Africa in recent years.

The club supporters are passionate about their club. Thousands of fans dressed in team colours can close down streets and paint the entire town gold and black ahead of big matches. Asec Mimosa uses the Stade Felix – Houphouet Boigny as their home ground. The 65 000 seater stadium is named after the country’s former president. Matches against their biggest rivals, Africa Sports are usually well attended and can split the country into two halves. But Asec Mimosa also has the ability to unite the whole nation behind them whenever they participate in CAF club competitions, most will remember how the whole country went into mourning after the losing the 1995 CAF Champions League final against South African giants, Orlando Pirates. The club would go on to lift the trophy three later after defeating Zimbabwean side Dynamos. Their success on the continent did not end with that victory as a youthful Asec Mimosa team humbled Tunisian glamour side, Esperance in the CAF Super Cup.

A young Didier Zokora and Kolo Toure were among the players who held their own against seasoned professionals in the historical 3-1 victory against the Tunisians. The average age of that team was 19 years and most of the players had come through the club’s junior ranks. Asec Mimosa is still a dominant force in Ivorian football, years after a group of workers from different parts of the world first gathered to form the club in 1949. In recent years players such as Yannick Zakri have donned the team colours before moving to South Africa to join 2016 African Champions, Mamelodi Sundowns. Visionaries such as co-founder Trenou Alfred Seho, club president Roger Ouegnin, former coaches Guy Fabre and Phillippe Troussier laid the foundation for the club’s success. Just like the remarkable Mimosa flower which is on the club’s logo, the Abidjan based has produced numerous talented players and touched many lives. The Mimosa flower is quick to close its leaves when touched, the same way the club moves quickly in finding the best young talent and prepare them for top-flight football at the highest level.

-JP

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