The belief prevails in our culture that sports success is inconsistent with educational attainment. That is the result of what we saw in our school life as the talented player in sports was often absent from his lessons because he cares more about sports.

Costa Rica surprised the whole world in the 2014 World Cup, as it climbed to the quarter-finals, and contributed to the elimination of England and Italy from the first round, and it took penalties shootouts against the Netherlands to eliminate them, meaning that it was mostly luck that prevented them from advancing forward to the World Cup semi-final.

At the time, many wondered: What is happening with this team? The answer came through former Costa Rican goalkeeper Gabelo Conejo, who - in statements to the German press - credited all the athletic success
to development in the education system.

That day, Conejo said: “A well-qualified person academically must have the maturity to assess the problem and deal with pressures and be effective and responsible in his work."

The goalkeeper, who represented his country in the 1990 World Cup, added: "Many of our players are professionals, and most importantly, 95% of them attended universities."

One of the stars of the Costa Rican national team in the World Cup in Brazil was Celso Borges, who said about this issue: “Education contributes to the player’s ability to understand the coach’s instructions and analyze different situations in the match.”

Perhaps this seems theoretical, but it is said that the most important secret of the success of the «La Masia» academy is not related to its strict sports system, but rather its advanced educational system. Where the student is forced to pass the school classes and is subject to important lessons in languages, mathematics, and problem-solving methods.

A look at the Aspire Academy in Qatar, which simulates Barcelona's La Masia, ​​as it provides the best teachers in subjects not related to sports competitions. The professor of physics and mathematics is crucial in developing the student’s mental activity, understanding problems and understanding some phenomena, and dealing cleverly with hardships.

The one who thinks that football is still just a physical or even tactical preparation is wrong, because the game is much more complex, and one aspect of this complexity is training an athlete's mind to devise a quick solution to sudden problems.

In order to reach that, it is necessary for developing young talent to face different challenges, forcing them to develop, and providing them with the ability to deal quickly with up-to-date events.

Based on this, the intent of our conversation is not limited to a university degree as a condition of knowledge, nor to the art of making a generation physically, but rather, it is in providing environments and conditions for engaging in mental challenges, regardless of their educational umbrella.

I read once, that companies with a higher percentage of employees who read regularly are the same companies that are more creative when it comes to solving problems and this is another proof of the importance of education and culture - regardless of its official capacity - and its role and ability to make a difference in difficult situations.

In Conclusion

Academic minds are always an improvement to whatever field they're in. A well-educated player could last longer than a purely talented one as they often have the mental capacity to absorb information present on the pitch quicker. This makes education important in football or any sport, making it easy to conclude that is important in all other aspects.