West Brom’s training ground: Where it is, what it’s called and the history of Albion’s HQ
West Brom are a club that have constant ambitions of competing in the Premier League.
Although the Baggies are not in the top flight at the moment, the desire to return to the top table of English football remains as strong as ever before.
Ryan Mason is the man tasked with leading West Brom back to the promised land, and he will have to work tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that the dream can be realised during his stint in charge.
A large proportion of that work will take place at the club’s training ground, which is a relatively unknown place for the majority of the fanbase.
With that in mind, West Brom News sheds some light on Albion’s Headquarters.
History of The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre
Mason’s work on the training pitch at West Brom will be crucial to the club’s future successes, as that is where a manager can really drill his ideas and philosophy into his team.
Albion’s training ground is located in the nearby town of Walsall and is situated just off Birmingham Road, near the village of Great Barr.
- The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre is situated on Birmingham Road in Walsall
- It is around a 15 minute drive away from The Hawthorns
- The postcode for the training ground is WS5 3LQ
The facility was first opened in 2001, and was created with the view to helping to bring the club into the modern era, and fulfil its desire to grow and compete at the top level of English football.
It is currently officially known as The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre, as part of a three-year deal that has seen the American company become Albion’s Official Nutrition and Performance Partner.
Previously, the training ground was called The Palm Training Ground during the reign of former owner Guochuan Lai, prior to the reign of Shilen Patel.
Facilities at The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre
West Brom’s sale of academy graduate Tom Fellows rankled many among the fanbase, but with the facilities that the Baggies have at their disposal, fans can expect many more exciting talents to come from the production line in future.
Albion have several grass and artificial pitches at their training HQ, while they also have the luxury of an indoor pitch to work with.
There is also a gym and fitness centre on-site, with state-of-the-art features such as hydrotherapy pools designed to aid and accelerate players’ recovery.
While Albion’s academy building is located in much closer proximity to The Hawthorns, the training ground is also used by the youth teams, and serves as a significant contribution towards the academy’s Category One status.
Notable ex-West Brom academy stars
West Brom have produced numerous outstanding talents over the years, with the training ground playing a key part in their ability to nurture promising young players.
Unfortunately in recent years, a large proportion of those academy graduates have moved elsewhere before they could really make an inmpact in B71 at senior level.
The likes of Morgan Rogers and Louie Barry both fall into that academy, while others, such as Saido Berahino, ultimately failed to fulfil their lofty potential.
Josh Griffiths and Alex Williams are both flying the flag for the academy as part of the current squad, and there will surely be plenty more to come through the ranks at The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre.
It may not be an overly public aspect of the club, but the training ground is one of the most important elements at Albion by far.
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