Training as a sports and fitness salesperson also prepares you for professional football. Insights into training at a Bundesliga club. (Photo: © tungphoto_Mongkol Chakritthakool/123RF.com)
Read aloud:
Dominik Kohr is completing an apprenticeship as a sports and fitness salesman at Bayer 04 – parallel to his apprenticeship, the young talent is training with the Werkself professional team.
He's been playing soccer since he could walk. Talent runs in the family: His father, Harald, once scored goals as a center forward for 1. FC Kaiserslautern and Wattenscheid 09. Dominik Kohr has known that he, too, wanted to become a professional soccer player ever since he first put on a Bayer 04 jersey at the age of 14. Back then, the Trier native drove to Leverkusen every Friday for training. At 15, he moved in with a host family in the city where his club played. "That was hard for my mother," says Dominik Kohr.
"But it was important to my parents that I didn't go to a boarding school, but lived with a family." While working on his football skills at Bayer 04, he earned his secondary school diploma in Leverkusen. He then decided to train as a sports and fitness salesperson at Bayer 04. "It was a big deal for my parents that I could do my training here," says the young footballer. The training lasts three years, but because of his secondary school diploma, he would like to shorten it to two and a half years.
He currently works in ticketing, accepting bookings, reserving and shipping tickets, and supporting the department's staff. Previously, he worked at the soccer school, helping to organize summer camps and coach the young players. "That was a lot of fun," recalls Dominik Kohr. "Since I used to go to summer camps myself, I was able to put myself in the children's shoes." His training has even taken him to the management office, where, among other things, he placed orders and distributed them internally.
He says he likes the variety of ticketing; there's always plenty to do. His absolute highlight: sending out tickets for the Champions League match between Bayer 04 and Barcelona. There's no shortage of football highlights either. The 18-year-old, who plays in central midfield for Bayer 04's U19 team, was allowed to go to a training camp in Portugal during the winter break to train with the Werkself first team. This was an important step towards a professional career. It was great to get tips from Michael Ballack and co., the youngster reveals. The difference to his previous training is huge; the pace is much faster, and his mind is quicker too; you just have to get used to it.
The biggest challenge for him is asserting himself physically against the experienced players. Although he has trained regularly with the senior team since then, he still focuses primarily on the U18 team. His participation in the Four Nations Tournament in Israel with the U18 national team was his greatest success as a player to date. Under DFB coach Christian Ziege, the German team competed against Japan, Portugal, and host nation Israel and won the tournament.
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An athlete on the rise? Things are going well at the moment, but he had to take a break from the U17 youth team due to back problems. "That's when I realized how important training is," says Kohr. "My football career can be over in an instant; then I'd only have my secondary school diploma." At the training center, the boy is given his own individual weekly schedule, and it's quite full: Mondays and Thursdays he goes to vocational school, and Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are scheduled for additional classes at the training center.
A freelance teacher prepares for school work or exams. Every day except Thursday, the boy works in ticketing. Training takes place on the same days and on Saturday mornings. And on Sundays, the games take place, with his father cheering him on from the sidelines. In addition, there are DFB training sessions and selection matches. Nevertheless, there's still time in the evening to sit down with his host family, talk about the day, or watch a movie. Kohr beams with satisfaction. Then he has to leave: preparation for the midterm exam is about to begin.
Trainee at Bayer 04
The apprenticeship at Bayer 04 as a sports and fitness management assistant or IT specialist for IT systems integration is primarily intended for young people from the football youth squad, but not exclusively. Anyone interested in the work of the football club can also apply for an apprenticeship even if they are not a football player. Due to the very limited number of places, it's advisable to clarify your chances of being accepted before submitting an unsolicited application.
Contact us via: 0 18 05 - 04 04 04 (14 cents/min. German landline), email ausbildung@bayer04.de
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