Real Madrid will be back in '08

Apparently, seeing Real Madrid and all of its international superstars play a match in Salt Lake City wasn't a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity after all.

Fresh off his business trip to Spain, Real Salt Lake owner Dave Checketts confirmed Friday morning that a 10-year partnership with Real Madrid had been reached — and it includes Real Madrid coming to Utah every other year.

So if you missed seeing David Beckham at Rice-Eccles Stadium last month, Checketts said the English superstar and his Real Madrid teammates will be returning in July of 2008 to play a match at the new Sandy soccer stadium.

That was one of several agreements Checketts reached with Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon during his visit.

While Real Madrid's commitment to play additional exhibition matches is great news for fans, it's the club's promise to help fund 50 percent of an elite soccer academy in Salt Lake City that will raise eyebrows not just in Utah but across the country. Checketts estimates the price tag of the academy to be around $25 million, with Madrid committed to picking up half that amount.

So what exactly is a soccer academy and why does it cost so much?

Think of it as a specialty school for soccer players from around the world. Once the academy is up and running, approximately 100 to 200 of the top soccer players between ages 12 and 18 will live in Utah, attending classes at the academy in the morning and then practicing and playing games in the afternoon and evening.

Checketts doesn't anticipate construction on the academy to begin until 2007.

"We're prepared to get started as soon as the city is ready," said Checketts. "We're still putting the details together on our details with the county and with Sandy and with Salt Lake City."

As for where the academy will be constructed and who will pay for the land, those details are still being discussed, according to Checketts.

This won't be the first soccer academy in the United States, but Real Madrid's involvement may ultimately make it the most prestigious. Soccer is among several sports youths participate in at the IMG Academies in Bradenton, Fla., with tennis being the most dominant at the academy.

The IMG Academies is also where the U.S. National Team's under-17 residency program is based. This is the closest thing this country has to the type of soccer academy used around the world by so many soccer teams.