New bid to tackle youth drop-out in football

A new scheme designed to tackle the number of 14-to-17-year-olds dropping out of football has been launched by the Football Association (FA) and sponsor Vauxhall Motors.

The initiative has been unveiled by the sport's national governing body following a study by HPI, which examined the reasons why teenagers stopped playing football.

According to the findings, the main reasons for the drop in participation among the 14-to-17 age group are the increasing competitiveness of club football and the lure of other pursuits.

The realisation of not being able to play professional football and external pressures such as school work and employment have also been cited as reasons for the decline.

Under the new FA/Vauxhall Motors scheme, youngsters will be offered recreational football after school at small-sided facilities, which will be led by specialist FA coaches.

FA senior national game development manager Peter Ackerley said: "This is about looking at what our young players are telling us and providing them with options to overcome the highlighted barriers, helping transition them into creating a football habit for life."

For more about the FA's National Game Strategy and its vision for the domestic game until 2020, see Sports Management 2011 Issue 2, p38

Details: www.thefa.com