“Give to others in my turn”: in Nanterre, Blaise Matuidi supports children with his Playse platform

A key word: pleasure. This Wednesday, upon his arrival at Urban Soccer in Nanterre, at 2 p.m., Blaise Matuidi announced the entry color. Facing the 2018 world champion, around thirty ecstatic children. “Have fun, we’re going to have a great afternoon,” said the former midfielder with 84 caps and 9 goals with the France team.

Since his retirement in 2022, after two seasons at Inter Miami, Blaise Matuidi has invested. He launched the start-up Playse, a platform which gives young people access to qualified football coaches and innovative methodology (15 euros per session, 49.90 euros for a monthly subscription). In Nanterre, a promotional event was organized, in the company of other former professionals, such as Grégory Sertic, Sylvain Marveaux and Kieran Gibbs.

“It’s been a while since I stopped my career and the first thing I had in mind was to give to others in my turn,” confides Blaise Matuidi. I saw a lot of children who dreamed, with this desire to work, to surpass themselves. Playse allows you to have a coach available near you. It’s happiness. »

The platform already has 4,700 young players registered. Around a hundred coaches are at their disposal, on more than fifty fields spread across thirty different cities in France. Most of the children are delighted, like Ousmane, 10 years old, fan… of Ousmane Dembélé. “I feel great during training. We learn lots of things. But I dream of being a footballer, so I’m not going to relax. »

“The activities are fun, even for young children”

His mother, Laetitia, is amused by her son’s determination. She praises the qualities of Playse, and the human relationship of the coaches: “The coaches are always available to discuss with us. It’s very reassuring as a mother. The activities are fun, even for the youngest children. They progress without being put under pressure. » Ousmane’s smile is all the wider since he was able to play with Blaise Matuidi this Wednesday. “Plus, he was on my team!” He made a few passes at me. »

Even though it may look like it, Playse rejects the label of “Mbappé project”. Educators promise not to sell dreams to children, and that their goal is not to make them professionals. The platform claims that only progression is targeted. Particularly in relation to useful qualities off the field, such as concentration.

Blaise Matuidi’s platform offers children training monitoring. LP/Léo Vignal

The training offered by Playse highlights the development of children’s motor and cognitive skills. For this, several exercises, such as playing with an eye patch, pirate style. “We send stimuli to the brain so that young people absorb certain situations,” explains Iago Lago, a qualified coach who met Blaise Matuidi in the United States and developed the platform’s programs.

Clément Blanchon is one of the Playse trainers in France. He insists on the importance of speaking to children: “They must progress with a smile. If so, then we win! Moreover, the name Playse is a play on words between pleasure and play. We advocate encouragement. To miss is, above all, to learn. »

“I would have dreamed of living a day like this”

The platform has already launched partnerships with certain clubs. Its qualified coaches therefore help local trainers to apply this new methodology. Anthony Clairefond, the president of JS Istres, is fully satisfied. “They have a different way of speaking to young people. Parents feel it. Before, when we organized courses, it was a bit like daycare. Now, it’s more structured, more professional. »

There is another who wears a big smile on the grounds of the Nanterre complex. And he is not a child. “When I was younger, I would have dreamed of experiencing a day like this,” says Grégory Sertic. We are in sharing, pleasure, but mainly learning for the child. On a football and human level. » The former Girondins de Bordeaux or Olympique de Marseille player will lead training courses for Playse.

Blaise Matuidi is satisfied with the beginnings of his platform, and is delighted to democratize a different way of learning football: “For us, it was different. At the time, we had the opportunity to play in the street. We were creative. Nowadays, it’s more complicated for young people, there is a strong demand in the clubs. Young people demand more. Football must be open to everyone. »