More than 50 football clubs across Northern Ireland have appointed a champion to help implement the Irish FA’s Youth Football Framework.
The champions are spreading the word within their clubs and beyond about the new framework, which aims to revolutionise youth football here.
Jordan Reid, Game Development Manager at the Irish FA Foundation, explained: “We want every club to have a champion and be the ambassador for change embedded in that club.”
So far 55 clubs have a YFF champion in their ranks. Anyone interested in becoming a club champion should contact youth.framework@irishfa.com for more information.
The Irish FA Foundation is continuing to meet with coaches, both in person and online, to explain the ‘why’ of the new framework.
The foundation’s Game Development Team has developed workshops to explain the rationale behind the framework.
Since launching the framework ‘why’ workshops at the start of March the foundation has delivered 75 sessions (online and face to face) to almost 600 people.
Jordan pointed out: “100% of participants surveyed said they now have a better awareness of the Youth Football Framework roadmap and had a positive experience in the sessions.
“Participants have told us the sessions are very informative and explain how the new framework will help and improve experiences for coaches, parents and players at every age level.”
The YFF online sessions are open to anyone interested in youth football provision in Northern Ireland – coaches, club officials, teachers and parents.
They provide an opportunity for the foundation’s Game Development Officers to highlight the roadmap and timelines for implementation, some of the changes in rules and formats, as well as the ‘why’ of the evolution of youth football and ‘how’ to implement.
The framework is built around four key pillars - Game, Education, Environment and Governance – and the webinars explain the pillars as well as provide coaches and others with a better understanding of how the youth game will evolve in the coming years.
The foundation will be staging workshops throughout the rest of this month, with more to follow in June, to inform interested parties about the Youth Football Framework ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Interested parties can sign up for an online session via the following link: https://forms.office.com/e/wUBXhptYXR
There are also face to face workshops for coaches working at age groups that will deliver 3v3 and 5v5 formats in line with the first phase of implementations within the framework; these implementations are due to be rolled out next season.
These sessions provide practical examples of ‘why’ and ‘how’ to implement the formats on the pitch. Coaches learn about the new rules, the format of football festivals and ways to link training to matchdays.
For more information on how to set up a session with your club please contact youth.framework@irishfa.com.
In addition the foundation is offering a free module on its Coach Education portal to help coaches of every age and stage to navigate the new framework, which aims to maximise enjoyment and technical development for every child and young person here.
It also enables coaches to reflect on how to create a good environment for their players and teams.
More than 200 coaches have completed the online coach education module to date; coaches with a valid UEFA C Licence gain five CPD points for completing the free course.
Click here for further information.
And for more information on the Youth Football Framework visit here .
