Organised football – What you can expect to find

There are many different versions of 'the beautiful game' for kids to enjoy with plenty of schools, clubs and organisations providing facilities for them to have a full and active involvement in the sport.

Mini – football for players up to ages 10/11

Mini – football has revolutionised the way that younger kids play the game. It is likely to be their first experience of playing in a team and it is great fun as all the players are fully involved in the action. It can be summarised as follows;

Players over 11/12

At this age players are moving quickly towards the traditional form of the game with 11 players per team. However it has been recognised that the gap from playing mini-football to 11 v 11 is considerable and there could be a better way of managing this transition. Now, as players get older, many are playing matches where each team has 9 players. The format is the same as mini-football, but with slightly bigger goals and a bigger pitch. It usually follows that a team will have one season at 9 v 9 and then make the final step up to youth football and playing 11 v 11. To summarise;

Girls

Girls' football continues to grow in terms of its popularity; FA figures indictate that 31% of all girls aged 5-15 are taking part in some way. The expansion of the womens game is gaining considerable momentum and all the UK associations are committed to supporting its growth.

Futsal

Futsal is becoming increasingly popular in the UK. Generally played indoors it is a 5-a-side game, played with hockey sized goals and with a smaller ball that has a 30% reduced bounce compared to a normal football. Its popularity is primarily due to the fact that it encourages skills and creative play with less emphasis on the physical side of the game.

Disabled

Football for the physically disabled and those with learning difficulties continues to develop. All the national associations have developed strategies to cover this important group and they are a good starting point for getting more information.

Football in the Community

Football in the Community is a well established charity programme that operates in many locations. It is quite broad based in using football to reach out to thousands of children and adults through schools, community groups and voluntary organisations.

Tournaments

Football never stops! Throughout the early part of the summer, many grassroots clubs will organise football tournaments. This will involve a number of teams from different clubs playing out a competition in one location. Generally, the younger players in each team will play a qualifying 'round robin' league to ensure that everyone gets some football; the most successful teams then proceed into a knockout cup style competition. Most tournaments are completed in a day and can be great fun.

5-a-side

5-a-side football has been around for a long time, but has recently surged in popularity. This is due to several specialist 5-a-side centres opening around the UK, each having lots of pitches. It is a demanding game to play; although it will be a shorter match time the ball is nearly always in play as the game is played on an enclosed area (not much time for a breather!). Organised adult leagues are very popular and more centres are now running leagues for younger players.