Success Stories.

Life After RIASA.

Find out how RIASA soccer academy has helped previous students achieve their ambitions within the football industry and beyond.

Nahki Wells

Nahki joined the RIASA Programme in 2010. From the outset, you could see he was very technically gifted and was going to go far in the professional game. Mark Ellis, RIASA Founder & Academy Director helped Nahki with opportunities to play at different levels over the 12 months he was with RIASA.

From these experiences Mark Ellis then managed to get Nahki a trial at Carlisle United, and after being unsuccessful there he went to Bradford City. The rest is history as Nahki went on to play 3 years at Bradford City making 112 appearances and scoring 53 goals.

Nahki then signed for Huddersfield Town after a loan spell with the Terriers in 2014. He stayed with the Championship club for over 4 years making 153 appearances and scoring 49 times. Nahki then went on to play in the Premier League with Burnley, and now plays his football in the championship for Bristol city in 2021.

Naki has been a great product of the RIASA Programme, his raw talent alone was enough to catch the eye of clubs and coaches, however, by joining RIASA he was able to develop and experience all levels of football before venturing into the professional game.

Christian Eissele

Christian Eissele joined the RIASA Postgraduate Programme in 2011 to further his academic learning and soccer development. He graduated with a Masters Degree in International Business. It was clear that Christian's work ethic and playing ability stood out from the rest. After being on our programme and progressing on the field, Christian had the opportunity to showcase his ability in our yearly European tour in Finland.

Finland was the turning point for Christian, and after impressing the coaches at PS Kemi, who are now known as Kemi City F.C, he managed to sign a professional contract allowing him to take up playing in the third division in Finland. Christian enjoyed his football in Europe, he scored his first professional hat trick against HauPa and then, in the same week, scored 5 goals against Warkaus.

Being from the US and always wanting to play back home, Christian went on to play in the USL and the USL Championship for Sacramento Republic and Oklahoma City Energy. Over his 7 year professional playing career, Christian made over 200 appearances and scored 98 competitive goals. After retiring in 2019, Christian still wanted to work in soccer. He now owns F3 Soccer Training in Florida and coaches at Lake Mary High School. 

Christian Mckeown

Christian Mckeown joined the RIASA Undergraduate Programme in 2014. He spent 4 years with us here in Leeds, graduating with a dual accredited US/UK BA Degree in International Sports Management.

After graduating from RIASA with a highly recognisable degree qualification, Christian was seeking more academically and went back to the US to study a 2 year masters programme at Benedictine College in Atchison, KS. During his Masters Degree, Christian expanded his networking structure and managed to gain valuable work experience. He also managed to work after graduating in the marketing department at Benedictine College as videographer and editor.

Through his teenage years into his adult life, Christian had a creative side and was passionate about videography. With the help of his degree qualification and further academic commitments he was able too fast track his career and start his own business in something he loves.

To date Christian has completed numerous projects which have seen him create traditional short-from marketing content, event recap videos, sports hype videos, short-films, documentary-style videos and more. Christian’s business is thriving and through his hard work and determination he has managed to achieve success after being part of the RIASA Undergraduate programme. If you ever need any videography projects, then please check out Christian McKeown Videography.

James Voisey

James joined the RIASA Postgraduate Programme in 2014. He graduated within 12 months earning himself a Masters Degree in Sports Business.

Since graduating James, who was a UK student, has gone on to work for Plymouth Argyle Football Club as Partnership Development Manager. James has spent over 5 years working within the football industry earning different promotions along the way.

Adam McCabe

Adam McCabe joined the RIASA Undergraduate soccer programme in 2011. He graduated with the class of 2015 after spending 4 years playing soccer at our academy. Adam is an intelligent attacking playmaker who played in the number 8 and 10 roles for RIASA. Whilst Adam was on our soccer programme he went on trial at Bradford City and Eccleshill United Football Club.

After graduating and leaving the UK, Adam went on to play soccer in Thailand and Slovakia before returning to the United States and playing for Georgia Revolution FC. In 2016, McCabe was nominated as the 2016 Defensive Player of the Year for the club. Today in 2021, Adam has a successful soccer training business which is located in Atlanta. Adam also plays his part in the community and regularly hosts a podcast show called ‘The Gay Footballer's Podcast’.

PRO SOCCER EXPERIENCE

10 Reasons Why RIASA Should Be On Your College Soccer List.

Choosing where you’re going to spend 4 years of your life can be daunting, we know it’s a scary thought trying to understand which college soccer programme is best for you, that’s why we wanted to share with you the main benefits of joining RIASA.

Start Your UK College Soccer Journey.

Earn a dual accredited US/UK degree which will help you break into today's modern sporting industry. Train and compete for  9-months of the year in world-class sporting facilities. Your time is now!

  • Earn a US & UK Degree
  • Play a 9-Month Soccer Season
  • Reach Your Potential in the UK