Grassroots Development

Regional Football Associations are expected to benefit from improved logistics following the Ghana Football Association’s latest distribution of vehicles under the FIFA Forward Programme.The support is designed to address long-standing transportation challenges faced by regional bodies, particularly in covering vast districts to monitor matches and organise competitions. Officials say the vehicles will enhance the ability of RFAs to effectively oversee grassroots, juvenile and women’s football activities.The latest delivery ensures that all regions are now adequately supported, following an earlier phase where eight regions received vehicles, with a promise to extend the initiative to the remaining areas.GFA leadership noted that strengthening the regions remains a key priority, as they play a crucial role in talent identification and development across the country. With improved mobility, RFAs are expected to increase their presence at matches and programmes, ensuring better organisation and oversight.Beneficiary units have been urged to use the vehicles strictly for football-related activities and to ensure proper maintenance and transparency in their management.The GFA maintains that the real impact of the initiative will be seen in the growth and development of the game at the grassroots level.

In Episode 1 of Off The Ball's 'In Her Boots' campaign with Aviva Ireland, Rachel Sheehan travels to Ballymackey Football Club in Tipperary to shine a light on the extraordinary grassroots impact of the Aviva 'In Her Boots' programme. She chats to players, coaches, and volunteers on what the programme brought to their club and how it's changed their community. All with thanks to Aviva Ireland | #InHerBoots

Send us Fan Mail Episode 125 Brought to you in association with our friends at Soccer Coach Weekly (@SoccerCoachWeek) Episode 125 – How AI Can Be Used in Football Coaching, a conversation with Kevin Middleton In this episode, Ray and I are joined by the awesome Kevin Middleton to explore the growing impact of Artificial Intelligence in football coaching and beyond. Kevin shares his journey and provides a fascinating insight into his work with FootballGPT, highlighting how AI is beginning to s...

Fort William FC have become the newest team to join the ScottishPower Women’s Highlands and Islands League, as the renewable energy company enters the third year of a landmark sponsorship deal energising women’s football at every age and stage across Scotland. Representatives from Scottish Women’s Football (SWF), ScottishPower and broadcaster Eilidh Barbour officially welcomed the […] The post New Season, New Team: Fort William Enters ScottishPower Women’s Highlands & Islands League appeared first on Scottish Women's Football.

Former LOI boss, current member of the Wexford hurling management ticket & head of games at Laois GAA - Shane Keegan - joins Ger Gilroy & Colm Boohig on the line to talk all things grassroots football in Ireland, following on from this weekend’s Football Saturday conversation! Shane makes the case as to why a compulsory switch to summer football is not quite as simple as it seems & may cause more problems than perhaps are being recognised… Catch The Off The Ball Breakfast show LIVE weekday mornings from 7:30am or just search for Off The Ball Breakfast and get the podcast on the Off The Ball app. SUBSCRIBE at OffTheBall.com/join Off The Ball Breakfast is live weekday mornings from 7:30am across Off The Ball

From ensuring pitch access to dealing with social media hate, there is still a lot of work the FA need to do to boost participation for women and girls By Flora Snelson October 15, 2025 It’s tempting to look at the Lionesses’ Euro 2022 win and say it was the start of something. But England...

Welcome back to It Was What It Was, the football history podcast hosted by Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper. In this second episode of a two-part special, we delve into the pivotal moments that lifted the 50-year ban on women's football in England. From the formation of the Women’s Football Association, to looking at the birth of the Lionesses and their first official international match. This episode looks at the pioneering women and their allies who revived the game in the 1960s, building grassroots clubs, fighting for recognition to pave the way for women’s football today. Tune in to hear all about the history of the women’s game. 00:00 The End of the Ban 00:28 Picking Up the Pieces: Women’s Football After the Ban 00:53 The 1960s Revival: Grassroots and New Teams 03:10 The Impact of England’s 1966 World Cup Win 07:54 Building a Movement: Key Figures and Early Clubs 10:56 Struggles for Facilities and Recognition 12:50 International Influence 21:22 The Formation of the Women’s Football Association 24:32 The FA’s Changing Attitude and Official Recognition 27:20 The First Women’s FA Cup and International Competitions 29:40 Tensions: Unofficial vs. Official Tournaments 36:52 The Lost Lionesses: Mexico 1971 and Unrecognised Pioneers 40:26 The First Official Lionesses Game: Scotland vs. England, 1972 45:44 Media Coverage and Social Attitudes 47:44 Timeline: From the First Match to Modern Success 50:08 Reflections: The Legacy of the Pioneers Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to the GP Soccer Podcast! Host Giovanni Pacini welcomes his worldwide audience to the 200th episode of the show! This week's "Conversation with the Coach" is the second part of the conversation with Jason Carney, the author of the book- "US Grassroots Soccer: Great on Paper, Shit on Grass", "Coaches Corner" features Paul Robinson and the topic is...

Secretary of the Waterford & District Junior League, Ger Murphy, joins Shane & Colm on the show to talk about the aligned calendar and the potential impact on grassroots football. Off The Ball Breakfast w/ UPMC Ireland | #GetBackInAction Catch The Off The Ball Breakfast show LIVE weekday mornings from 7:30am or just search for Off The Ball Breakfast and get the podcast on the Off The Ball app. SUBSCRIBE at OffTheBall.com/join Off The Ball Breakfast is live weekday mornings from 7:30am across Off The Ball

The boys are joined by Llanelli AFC Manager and Welsh football veteran Lee John and talk about his journey through grassroots football to the Welsh league, the FAW pushing for full time football in Wales, receiving media trading while doing his A License and the magic of Stebonheath Park. Lee talks about the financing at the Welsh league standard, the amazing benefits of “Wyscout” in preparation for games, making his decision to retire from football to start coaching, stepping into commentary...

FAI Grassroots Director Ger McDermott joins Eoin and Nathan to discuss the current state of the grassroots plan set out by the FAI to switch the season calendar to summer football.

Royal Oak assistant manager and grass roots legend Steve Bracknall is with us this week talking everything football from the Sheffield Imperial to the Premier League, including Bob the Bucket, Barnsley bloodbaths, Carpet Dave, and the Nags Head showdown. Bespoke kits for your club with O'Neills Sportswear UK 👇 👕Your custom design 🚚Delivered in 4-6 weeks ✅Low minimum order quantity 🤝Kit out your team now, from this link: https://bit.ly/3z46QiI Get your Undr The Cosh 24/25 kits here 👉 https://bit.ly/4g85VOG Exclusive Deal: Get an exclusive NordVPN deal here → https://nordvpn.com/cosh This is completely risk-free with NordVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee! Get two extra episodes a month with the Undr The Cosh Patreon club⬇️ https://tinyurl.com/2p8pts4a Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eoin Sheahan is joined by Athlone Town's Chloe Singleton and Shamrock Rovers Scarlett Herron to preview the upcoming Women's Premier Division campaign. While also discussing Carla Wards new development squad and the Women and Girls Football Development Plan that's being announced on Tuesday. To become a member and access our exclusive content simply click: here:http://offtheball.com/join

Send us Fan Mail Episode 112, Brought to you in association with our friends at Soccer Coach Weekly (@SoccerCoachWeek) Episode 112 - A Look At Grassroots Football, with Jason Carney, Director of Coaching at FC Portland and Author In this episode we speak again with the wonderful Jason Carney, who is the Director of Coaching at FC Portland. We discuss his coaching background and updates since we previously spoke back in 2022. We discuss grassroots football, the obstacles to player...

On Wednesday's Football Daily, Phil Egan brings you all the fallout from last night's heartbreaking Euro playoff defeat for the Republic of Ireland WNT. We speak to Kyra Carusa and Megan Connolly, plus Hibs and Ireland midfielder Ciara Grant on the need for stronger grassroots to help build the women's game. Plus, Wales manager Rhian Wilkinson on whether her bench provoked their hosts. Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner and his Ipswich counterpart Kieran McKenna on their respective captains' issues with the Rainbow Laces armband. Pep Guardiola is unsure if his Manchester City empire is falling. And there's plenty of transfer news to round up here at home.

Send us Fan Mail Episode 110, Brought to you in association with our friends at Soccer Coach Weekly (@SoccerCoachWeek) Episode 110 – Giving The Game Back To The Kids, a conversation with Chris Fraser In this episode we speak to Chris Fraser about grassroots football and discuss if adults are taking the game away from the kids We talk about the experiences Chris has seen this seen and how youth grassroots football has changes over the past few years. Chris sugges...

Belvedere Football Club chairperson John Hayden speaks on the vandalization of the club's grounds, how grassroots football has been neglected in Ireland, and what this may mean for the future of Irish football. Catch Off the Ball's sports breakfast show LIVE weekday mornings from 7:30am or just search for Off the Ball Breakfast and get the podcast on the Off the Ball app or wherever you listen to yours. SUBSCRIBE and FOLLOW the Off the Ball Breakfast podcast.

Pickup culture? Better rec soccer coaching? Who will do it? How? Filippo Silva, the Brazilian-American who started Tactical Manager TV on YouTube, joins the pod to discuss this stuff with Belz after we had a small disagreement on Twitter a few weeks back. We get into much more in the patron-only portion of the episode. Link below.

Belz is joined by Kirk Kinsey, director of Flagstaff Revolution, a grassroots club in Arizona, and Jesse Howe, the director of coaching at the Calvert Soccer Association, a grassroots soccer program in Maryland. All three of us are working in the trenches of rec soccer, trying to help more kids learn to love the ball and the game. Jesse just got back from a national symposium on grassroots soccer in Minneapolis, and he gives a brief report on that, and then we just talk through a lot of the challenges and some solutions that work in coaching U6 and U8 rec soccer. It's a long conversation and we cover a lot of topics, but I bet you'll enjoy it, find things to disagree with, and maybe even find a few things to agree with!

Labour Party leader Ivana Bacik joins Adrian & Shane on #OTBAM this morning with the party set to put forward a Dáil motion calling for investment in Irish football. Catch OTB's sports breakfast show LIVE weekday mornings from 7:30am or just search for OTB AM and get the podcast on the OTB Sports app or wherever you listen to yours. SUBSCRIBE and FOLLOW the OTB AM podcast. #OTBAM is live weekday mornings from 7:30am across Off The Ball, in association with Gillette | #EffortlessFlow

Aisling O'Reilly spoke with the FAI's Chief Executive Jonathan Hill at the launch of their Facilities and Infrastructure Vision and Strategy. He discusses the importance of the FAI receiving the funding requested from government, the support given to the the Women's National Team ahead of the World Cup, and the future of Irish football facilities with focus on women and girls at grassroots level.

Karen has ditched us for Barbados but the dedicated souls of The COYGIG Pod in Kathleen McNamee, Emma Byrne & Emma Carroll are present as always. It's been a quieter week with The Conti Cup getting limited coverage, so Emma Carroll has popped in for an extended stay to talk through all the real highlights of the week - Queen Jill Scott, The Toy Show and her Team of the Season (so Far)... **Make sure to listen to find out how you can win €1,000 for your local grassroots adult club!** Got a question for Kathleen, Karen & Emma? Email [email protected]! The COYGIG Pod on OTB Sports is in association with Cadbury FC, official snack partner to the Republic of Ireland's Women's National Team.

Kathleen, Karen & Emma have all the reaction to Ireland's World Cup draw, a remarkable week of Champions League and all the other happenings in the WSL. Listen to find out how you can win €1,000 for your local grassroots adult club! Got a question for Kathleen, Karen & Emma? Email [email protected]! The COYGIG Pod on OTB Sports is in association with Cadbury FC, official snack partner to the Republic of Ireland's Women's National Team.

IT'S OFFICIAL! WE'VE DONE IT! Ireland are heading to the 2023 World Cup, and no one knows just how much it means like our former Ireland internationals Emma Byrne & Karen Duggan - they're here with Kathleen McNamee to sift through every bit of the most historic night Irish football! Listen to the end to find out how you can win €1,000 for your local grassroots adult club! Got a question for Kathleen, Karen & Emma? Email [email protected]! The COYGIG Pod on OTB Sports is in association with Cadbury FC, official snack partner to the Republic of Ireland's Women's National Team.

With the WSL on a break, Kathleen, Karen & Emma are joined by sports psychologist Dr. David McHugh to discuss the roll psychology needs to play in modern sport, where the women's game is lacking and in light of recent allegations against the Manchester City women's academy, just how damaging this lacking can be. Listen to the end to find out how you can win €1,000 for your local grassroots adult club! Got a question for Kathleen, Karen & Emma? Email [email protected]! The COYGIG Pod on OTB Sports is in association with Cadbury FC, official snack partner to the Republic of Ireland's Women's National Team.

We've done it! Ireland have made it to the qualifiers! Fresh from all the excitement, Kathleen and Karen have a look at how exactly the evening played out against Slovakia, the progress seen in our campaign as a whole and the big question, what do we need to pull together to make it through the next round? Emma Carroll also rejoins us with her Team of the Week (or 'Potential Team of Future Weeks' more so) and Women’s football correspondent for Goal, Ameé Ruszkai to preview the new WSL season kicking off next weekend! Listen to the end to find out how you can win €1,000 for your local grassroots adult club! Got a question for Kathleen, Karen & Emma? Email [email protected]! The COYGIG Pod on OTB Sports is in association with Cadbury FC, official snack partner to the Republic of Ireland's Women's National Team.

We had a Brilliant night in Vicar Street last Wednesday for our first big roadshow in nearly 3 years! It was all with thanks to Cadbury FC. Thanks to everyone who came out and of course all proceeds from the night will go to Irish grassroots women’s football. This is some of our final panel with all four guests: Ian Wright, Karen Carney, Emma Byrne & Michael Owen - who sat down with Joe Molloy and Aaisling O'Reilly.

Mark Chapman & The Athletic's Matt Slater are joined by Dale Vince, owner of Forest Green Rovers Football Club who is at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. Dale's side are recognised by FIFA as being the greenest football club in the world - we’ll discuss how sport can take action against climate change.. And we are joined by Rob Sullivan, CEO of The Football Foundation to tell us about the £205million worth of Government funding the charity received last week to invest in grassroots football in England and how their work is linked to the 2030 UK and Ireland World Cup bid. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

To kick off 2020 on Football Ramble Daily, Andy Brassell is joined by Kick It Out’s Head of Development, Troy Townsend. In this exclusive interview Troy discusses his varied career as a cornerstone of the footballing community, as well as how football’s social climate has changed over his life as a football fan. From his love of Pelé and Brazil throughout the 1960s, to experiencing racism on the terraces as a fan, and coaching at a variety of grassroots clubs, Troy has led a fascinating life. And, as racism continues to pervade the game, he also discusses how seriously it can affect young black footballers as well as the hugely commendable and important work of Kick It Out. Search ‘Football Ramble Daily’ on social media to find us, and email us here: [email protected] ***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!*** The Football Ramble, the original and best football podcast. Brand new podcasts every single weekday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we are delighted to be joined by the wonderful Luis Melville who shares his background in the game of Futsal and helps us get a better understanding of the rules and benefits of this awesome game. We take a look at the game in more detail and discuss its appeal as a sport in its own right and how it can also be used to support the development of grassroots football players. We hope you get as much out of this episode as we did! Luis can be found on twitter @Lu...

Next season sin-bins (or temporary dismissals) will be rolled out across Grassroots football. We caught up with Mark Ives to chat about sin-bins, how the last two years of pilots have progressed and what's in store for next season for the leagues who are new to the system.