THE PLACE FROM WHERE WE MOVE TOWARDS VICTORIES SPORTS CENTER OF THE FA OF SERBIA – THE PRIDE AND GLORY OF SERBIAN FOOTBALL

The recent visit of UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin and his positive impressions of everything he saw at the FA of Serbia Sports Center in Stara Pazova confirmed once again that the Football Association of Serbia has positioned itself as an institution with one of the most modern and beautiful sports facilities in Europe.

“Serbian house of football is the place from where the players led by Ljubinko Drulović and Veljko Paunović moved towards winning the European and World Gold Medal. This is where Dragan Stojković’s players made plans and prepared tactics for a triumphant campaign through the World Cup qualifiers, and from there they will go to Qatar with the ambition to make the nation happy once again and represent Serbia worthily at the biggest show of World football” – said Bjeković, and the General Secretary Jovan Šurbatović reveals that there is a real possibility that the Football Association of Serbia will soon host a seminar of the best European referees:

“It is clear that the Sports Center in Stara Pazova has all possible infrastructural capacities for the organization of such a meeting. Here, I am primarily referring to the VAR rooms, which have been repeatedly stated to be equipped with state-of-the-art technology and as such are among the most modern in Europe. The idea existed a long time ago, now it was only intensified during the visit of President Čeferin and one of his closest Associates, Zoran Laković. It is very likely that UEFA will soon take advantage of the facilities provided by our house of football and send its best referees to Stara Pazova for preparations, training grounds and knowledge testing”

And that’s not all:

“We wish to host the UEFA Congress in 2024 or 2025.” There are many arguments that are on our side and give us the right to be optimistic. First of all, the fact that the works on the reconstruction of the Airport and the Sava Center will be completed by that period, which will significantly increase the capacities and place us in the group of countries with the most modern and largest congress center in Europe. In that case, we would have all the necessary resources and the possibility to highlight the candidacy for the organization of a major event such as the Congress of the Main organization of European football” – says Šurbatović and adds:

“The former management led by Tomislav Karadžić and Zoran Laković did a great job in 2011, we just continued to take care of the Sports Center and behave responsibly. That is why we entered a new investment cycle, which included a complete renovation of the premises. The combination of elegance, history, tradition and modern style is what the Sports Center of the Football Association of Serbia exudes today.”

Dragan Stojković, the Head Coach of our A national team, is very pleased with the impressions of prestigious figures from the world of sports he had the opportunity to host in the Serbian football house in Stara Pazova in the previous period.

“When Top Officials from UEFA come to visit you and are impressed by what they saw, you have to be happy and satisfied.” Aleksander Ceferin said that he visited many places and saw practically all sports centers in Europe, but this one in Stara Pazova exceeded all his expectations. The Management of the Basketball Association of Serbia also visited us and expressed their enthusiasm for the conditions we have in the Sports Center of the Football Association of Serbia.

Svetislav Pešić had a lot of impressions and said that we are not far behind Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern. All of this makes us very proud, but it also obliges us to continue working as before. The players enjoy the peace and atmosphere in Stara Pazova, they feel like they are at home and have optimal conditions for work and preparation ahead of important challenges in the Shirt of the national team.”

Stevan Stojanović, Director of the A National Team, agreed with Dragan Stojković’s words:

“Due to the function I perform in FSS, I often have the opportunity to travel and visit sports camps throughout Europe. Honestly, we don’t need to be envious of anything. On the contrary, we can only be proud of our Sports Center. Coach Stojković, his colleagues from the Technical Staff and our National Team players, who mostly come from big European clubs, have not had the slightest complaint about the working conditions and everything that is available to them in Stara Pazova.

Remember how complicated it was to organize the preparations of the National Team before, when the team was constantly moving, changing hotels, traveling by bus to training… That’s why the construction of the national camp was a complete success. Positive impressions and praise from UEFA Management during the recent official visit to the Football Association of Serbia are very gratifying and make us even more proud,” Stojanović explained.

Let us remind you that the FA of Serbia Sports Center was built with the support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Serbia, the World Football Federation (FIFA) and the European Football Union (UEFA). The Local Authorities of the municipality of Stara Pazova also contributed to the realization of this large project.

“The Sports Center of the FA of Serbia is one of the most modern sports centers in Europe” – said the Director of the Sports Center of the FA of Serbia Nenad Santrač and added: “The uniqueness of the concept is reflected in the fact that accommodation, sports and training facilities and all other facilities needed for organizing the preparations are integrated in one place for professional athletes with the highest quality level of service. The Sports Center of the FA of Serbia represents a prestigious sports and tourism complex that enchants its guests with its original architecture, modern interior, and facilities, from which we particularly highlight a unique and rich sports program.

In addition to the organization of preparations for all domestic and international teams, we also provide a high level of services to corporations and various other organizations, both in terms of comfortable accommodation and a pleasant stay, as well as in terms of various sports, recreational and business activities”.

Since its opening in 2011, the FA of Serbia Sports Center has successfully positioned itself on the hotel market of Europe and the World and it has become an important destination for sports teams, business people and congress tourism.

“Within the complex is “Hotel Serbia LUX”, a modern equipped hotel, categorized with four stars, with a capacity of 64 double rooms and four suites. The hotel also contains five conference rooms, equipped with audio-video devices. The complete renovation, which was done in 2021, allowed visitors a complete experience of comfort and convenience. The FA of Serbia Sports Center has four football pitches of FIFA standard with natural grass, one football pitch with a hybrid surface and one with artificial grass. We also have one tennis court and a Futsal pitch with the artificial grass. The stadium with a capacity of 3,500 seats meets all UEFA standards for playing official international football matches,” said Santrač.

The multifunctional sports hall contains all the elements needed for indoor sports, such as basketball, volleyball, handball, futsal, martial arts, and others. Within the sports block, there is an area for fitness and a gym, a spa and wellness center, as well as a part for rehabilitation recovery and medical unit.

The FA of Serbia Sports Center is home to all National Teams of the Football Association of Serbia. Throughout the year, depending on the commitments planned by UEFA and FIFA, the National Teams have the privilege of preparing at home for each match or competition. Since the opening of the FA of Serbia Sports Center, more than 40 UEFA tournaments for National Teams have been successfully organized, as well as the international tournaments for youth categories, where the National Teams from all over the World took part.

“As a proven destination for sports preparations, we have gained the trust of many foreign clubs and National Teams. The regular guests are teams from Russia, China, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Israel, and recently football clubs from Serbia as well as teams from other sports such as all National Teams of the Handball Association of Serbia, the Senior basketball team and many others have also been visiting us. All of them were delighted with the conditions in Stara Pazova, above all with the high-quality sports facilities, accommodation facilities, cuisine with a gastronomic offer adapted to athletes, high level of hospitality of the staff, variety of content for free activities as well as long-standing sports tradition” – pointed out the Director of the FA of Serbia Sports Center Nenad Santrac.