MOULTRIE — Hudson Champion, tackling midfielder and Colquitt County native, at only 13-years-old, has the opportunity of a lifetime. In March 2024, he will be traveling to Barcelona, Spain, to enhance his soccer skills at the exclusive FC Barcelona professional training facilities.  

“I am over the moon excited,” said Champion. “I can barely contain my excitement. I would scream it all the time if I could.”        

Out of the six to eight thousand hopefuls that participated in one of the 36 United States Summer FC Barcelona Soccer Camps, Champion was one of 150 selected to travel to Spain to continue in the academy.     

“It wasn’t just kids my age,” said Champion. “There were some 19-year-old’s there and they were amazing to watch.” 

In fact, Champion went on to explain how this camp provided him with a unique experience that had nothing to do with soccer. 

“There were kids from all over the US,” said Champion when reflecting on the Atlanta Barca Camp he participated in over the summer. “There was also a group of three from Honduras. They were all really nice, and there were lots of good people there. It was like a family.” 

During the camp, which was hosted at MOBA Soccer Academy in Peachtree City, Champion was taught by the Union of European Football Association (UEFA) Coaches and former FC Barcelona players.           

“When we first got there we got our stuff put on and sat in the bleachers,” said Champion. “ Then, the coaches came and introduced themselves and we got sorted into groups. Once we were on our fields, we lined up again in smaller groups and started doing the drills.”   

The summer camp uses the same drills that the academy in Spain uses with their professionals.      

“They are really big on ball handling skills and dribbling,” said Champion. “One of my favorite exercises was where one person was in the middle and four people were around him and they passed the ball between the middle person, changing between one and two touches.”       

The week-long experience is one Champion found invaluable.   

“It was a really fun experience. My favorite part was the scrimmages” said Champion. “To anyone who wants to be a professional soccer player and wants to learn something new I really would suggest going to the Barca summer camp.”         

After finishing the camp, it was back to Colquitt County to wait for the letter that would tell Champion if he was invited to Barcelona or not. 

“I was hanging out in my room playing XBOX,” said Champion. “My sister walked in and told me to go to my mom’s room. I thought it was in trouble. I don’t know what I did, but I thought I did something.”  

After being handed a letter by his mother, Champion read the words he had been waiting for:

‘Congratulations Hudson Champion, you have been invited to come to the FC Barcelona Academy.’

“I got so happy,” said Champion. “I screamed. I ran outside. I did a dance. I went to sleep that night knowing that in six months I would be heading to Barcelona.” 

The FC Barcelona Academy will be hosted at the Barcelona two Stadium.

“It’s a professional stadium,” said Champion. “They have really nice facilities. I’m very excited.” 

In addition to maintaining school sessions while at the academy, Champion will continue to be coached by UEFA coaches, will get to tour FC Barcelona Football Museum, watch a professional European Football game, meet former players, and explore the city and gain other cultural experiences.    

The academy’s scrimmages will be held not only against other participants in the program, but against similarly skilled European clubs. 

“There is so much opportunity there,” said Champion. “Other teams besides Barcelona will have the chance to see me play and potentially ask me to sign and come over and play. My whole goal is to find an academy abroad and move there to train.”

Though Champion’s ambitions take him away from Colquitt County and would be a huge adjustment for the family, Champion is already thinking about his future. 

“Most of the time people who go to academies end up in a contract and play professionally,” said Champion. “If you’re really good and you have teams already looking at you by the time you are 14 or 15, then they will actually pay you a lot of money.”  

There is one main thought on young Champion’s mind as he approaches this new chapter in his life. 

“I want to be able to get one step closer to playing professionally,” said Champion. “Hopefully, I’ll be the best player to come out of the US.”