Swansea bid to regain category one academy ahead of next season

Tom Gorringe [Huw Evans Picture Agency] Swansea City chief executive Tom Gorringe says the club hope to obtain category one status for their academy ahead of the 2027-28 season. The Championship club's academy was downgraded from from category one to category two before the 2020-21 season. Gorringe, in an update to fans on the club's website, said that they had officially submitted their intentions to regain category one status. "We want an academy that attracts the best players from Swansea whilst also being a hub for the best Welsh talent and it is our hope that making this change will further support this aim," Gorringe said. "This club's self-sufficiency has always historically been one of its strengths, even this pre-season that has been evident with a number of the academy graduates performing strongly with 10 of the 11 players on the pitch at the end of the Bochum game coming through our pathway. "We want that to continue to be the case and we believe this step would give us the best chance of accomplishing that goal." Gorringe's lengthy update also outlined the club's plans to buy Swansea.com Stadium outright from Swansea City Council. He also confirmed the club are looking to purchase the Fairwood training ground, which is owned by Swansea University. "Discussions over this purchase are also progressing well, however there is still some work to do before we are able to update you further," Gorringe added.