Young Football Academy was founded in 2019 with a simple philosophy: “Love the ball, love the game.”

We live in a country that, despite making some progress at grassroots level, still insists on putting children as young as 5 in a competitive team environment, then coaching them to win. Volunteer coaches are absolute heroes with the time they give to these kids, but with a maximum of a couple of hours per week at practice, they have virtually no chance of developing the individual. At Young Football Academy, this is our main focus.

We strongly believe in our philosophy, and our kids spend almost the entire class each week working with the ball in some way. Our pre-school programme Lil Ballers welcomes children into group classes from the tender age of 18 months through to 6 years old. Focusing on new themes every couple of weeks, our fun and engaging games develop their balance, co-ordination and motor skills in a non-competitive and nurturing environment. As they move up through the three age-appropriate levels their confidence grows, and it’s amazing to watch them applying skills they’ve learned in previous weeks without even realising it!

After they turn 6, our children have the option to continue their journey with us, as Young Football Academy’s group and 1-2-1 coaching sessions offer them a pathway to grow and improve. But, most importantly, we help them to continue to grow their love of having a ball at their feet.