Playing park football with friends is a great way to socialise and stay fit. But if you’re looking to take the next step, it might be time to set up a club of your own. Before you take the plunge and register your own FA-affiliated club, you should ask yourself four questions: Do we have enough players to fulfil our...

The huge riches that await the very best young footballers in England are beyond the wildest dreams of most. Worldwide fame, untold riches and the opportunity to do something they love for a living can be attractive pull factors to the game for youngsters. But the biggest rewards are reserved for less than one percent of the children who are...

England’s national team will once again leave a major tournament finals early. But this time, the English ‘superstars’ must live with the fact that their Welsh counterparts have been the very best of British at Euro 2016. The rise of Welsh football on the international stage is not just down to having Gareth Bale in the squad - it has...

Geoff Hurst helped England to fulfil its destiny 50 years ago this month - by scoring the goal that brought the World Cup Jules Rimet trophy to the home of football. Despite countless opportunities and near misses, the England national team has failed to replicate that success. For whatever reason, the country that gave the world the game has fallen...

Although the FA is the body primarily responsible for driving forward grassroots football in England, UEFA plays an important role too. Under the banner of the UEFA Grassroots Charter, the governing body of European football is responsible for improving grassroots activities across all of its member associations. While the effects of this involvement from UEFA might not be immediately apparent...

In October 2015, Wales lost the first match of their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign to Bosnia-Herzegovina - but no one really cared that much. Chris Coleman had masterminded Wales’ first qualification for a major tournament finals since 1958. Gareth Bale described the defeat as the best of his life, and an entire nation looked forward to its first summer of...

Some areas of England just can’t get enough football. These are the areas that produce far more than their fair share of England internationals on a regular basis. When you think of hotbeds of grassroots football, your thoughts might turn to the likes of the North East, Manchester, Liverpool and London. Plymouth probably isn’t a place that springs to mind...

When the FA announced its £250m scheme to improve grassroots football in England, hopes for the future the game in local communities rose. But it seems that there might be a significant flaw with the plans. As more than 80 percent of community pitches are owned by local authorities, it is inevitable that they will be responsible for the implementation...

If you were to ask a local grassroots footballer about the state of the game, they would probably reply with a list of complaints about rotting facilities and unplayable pitches. But ask the average professional, and the response might be a little more vague. So when former Newcastle United and Tottenham legend Chris Waddle was asked about the grassroots game...

At the end of 2015, the FA conducted the biggest ever survey into the state of grassroots football in England. Although there were many issues raised by people involved in the game, the overwhelming complaint related to the state of municipal football pitches. More than 80 percent of grassroots football matches take place on pitches run by cash-strapped councils. Yet...