The Albanian Football Federation identified 130 promising young footballers during its Open Stage scouting event in New York on June 27, reinforcing efforts to recruit Albanian diaspora talent from the United States and Canada.
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The selection sessions were led by former Albania national team defender Ansi Agolli alongside representatives from the FSHF National Teams Department, as part of the federation's long-term strategy to discover and integrate talented players from the Albanian diaspora into the country's youth national teams.
A total of 121 boys and nine girls born between 2010 and 2014 participated in the event, showcasing their technical ability, athletic qualities, and potential to represent Albania at youth international level in the coming years.
The participants traveled from numerous U.S. states and Canadian provinces, highlighting both the size of the Albanian community in North America and the growing pool of football talent developing outside Albania's borders.
One of the most encouraging outcomes of the scouting event was the strong participation from the youngest age groups, providing further evidence that Albania's future talent pipeline in North America continues to expand. The federation believes this growing base of young players will create new opportunities for the country's youth national teams in the years ahead.
FSHF has made the identification of diaspora talent a central pillar of its development strategy, working closely with Albanian communities worldwide to monitor emerging players and offer them a pathway into the red-and-black national team system. The New York Open Stage represents another significant step in strengthening the connection between Albanian football and its global diaspora while ensuring promising young athletes have the opportunity to pursue an international career with Albania.