ON x Girona FC 2026: Six Days of Elite Methodology in Spain
From September 1 to 6, 2026, a selected group of Olympique National Beirut players traveled to Spain for a structured training collaboration with Girona FC, a long-standing partner of the academy.
This was not a tournament. It was not a showcase. It was six days of elite football methodology, delivered on the same pitches where Girona FC develops its own players.
What Happened on the Pitch
The program was built around the core principles that define modern positional football at the highest level. Each day focused on a specific concept, applied progressively across the week.
Players worked through intensity training and pass and move combinations before moving into positional play and how structure dictates movement. The midweek sessions focused on possession in tight spaces and possession reset with build up from the back, two of the most technically demanding concepts in the game and the ones that separate organized teams from reactive ones.
The final sessions covered the scan triangle, teaching players to gather information before receiving the ball, rondo and body orientation to develop the relationship between receiving posture and decision making, and oriented control, ensuring the first touch already moves the player toward their next action.
Every concept connects directly to the La Masia methodology that Technical Director Coach Paco Araujo has implemented at ONB since the academy's founding. For the players who made the trip, the week was not an introduction to a new way of playing. It was confirmation that what they train every session in Beirut belongs on a European pitch.
What It Means for the Academy
The Girona FC collaboration is part of ONB's international placement program, designed to give selected players access to European coaching environments, partner club facilities, and the kind of exposure that accelerates development in ways no domestic program can replicate.
Every season, ONB players who demonstrate the right level of technical and tactical development earn the opportunity to train within this network. The September 2026 trip to Girona FC is the latest chapter in that ongoing commitment.
What It Means for the Academy
The 2026-27 season is underway. Enrollment is open across all programs for players born 2014 to 2022. For families interested in an academy where international exposure is part of the development journey and not just a talking point.
