Future of English Football

In a largely disappointing World Cup in South Africa in 2010, with many ‘heavyweights’ of international football performing way under par, very few teams managed to stand out from the crowd. England managed only one half-decent performance (admittedly against Slovenia) before being soundly beaten in the last 16, Italy failed to qualify from what was a very winnable group, whilst the French were eliminated amongst much controversy and national disgrace. The Netherlands did reach the final but their style of play, particularly in the final itself, wasn’t pretty. Two sides that were easy on the eye, however, were Germany, semi finalists, and Spain, the eventual winners of the tournament. Two nations that have benefited immensely from youth development.

The chief executive of the Bundesliga, Christian Seifert, recently told Observer Sport how their underwhelming performances in France 98’ and the European Championships two years later, led to a revolution in Germany’s youth development. In stark contrast to the Premier League’s recent lukewarm ruling, which states that each club must name 8 home-grown players in a squad of 25, (home-grown meaning the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Gael Clichy and Ritchie de Laet all qualify) the Bundesliga made it compulsory for all 36 teams across both divisions to register proper academies before being able to play in their respective leagues. Furthermore, these new academies were obliged to have a minimum of 12 players on their books who were either German or eligible to play for the German national side.



The DFB (German Football Association) and the Bundesliga have a strong relationship and share an interest in the national teams fortunes, and they worked together to produce talented young footballers whilst also maintaining the quality of the domestic league. In England however, the FA and Premier League are constantly at eachother’s throats. Ian Watmore recently resigned from his post as FA Chief Executive over frustrations other board members, mainly officials from the Premier League, rejected his proposals to reconstruct the association for the benefit of English football.

The English youth system brings through roughly 10,000 kids in a year, aged between 9 and 16, whereas the German equivalent brings through only 5,000, all of whom must be at least 12 years old. Tellingly, only 1% of 9 year olds who join a football club go on to become professional footballers. The structure must change: there should be an age minimum of 12; and youngsters should be playing on pitches that allows them to play from the back, not look for the long ball every time.

In Spain, the other nation to impress in South Africa, kids are taught to play, how to keep the ball, how to move the ball - results of matches are in effect, irrelevant. The nurturing of talent comes first. Back in England, we teach kids how to win, how to compete, how to tackle. One look at the stars to come out of Barcelona’s youth system tells you the impact the right style of coaching can have. But do we have the quantity, or the quality of coaches? Under 3,000 coaches in England boast UEFA’s top qualifications (B, A and Pro Badges). Compare that with 24,000 in Spain, and a massive 34,000 in Germany.

Sir Trevor Brooking, the FA’s head of youth development, has already pinpointed Spain as one to imitate. Speaking in June last year, when asked about Spain’s youth development, Brooking said, “That’s the key to their success, the development groups they have set up’. Spain were formerly regarded as a good team to watch but their senior side had never won either the World Cup or European Championships. That was until 2008, when they lifted the European Championships trophy in Austria, beating Germany 1-0. Two years on and they added the World Cup to their collection with victory over the Netherlands. Out of the 23 players in Spain’s World Cup 2010 squad, 13 of them had represented the youth side in either the U17 or U20 World Championships. In total, the Spaniards have won the UEFA European U19 championships four times, and the U17 championships twice.

Similarly to the German setup, everybody in Spain works together for the good of the national side. The governing body, RFEF set up a youth programme years ago with an emphasis on development, and since then they’ve shared a great working relationship with all the clubs in the Spanish league. Senior head coach Vincent del Bosque believes that has a positive impact on his side. “Spanish football is in very good hands thanks to the RFEF and the clubs. I think we are on the right track, but we must not rest on our laurels. We must look to the future and continue on the same path.” And that’s exactly what’s happening. Sergio Canales, Iker Muniain, Thiago Alcantara, David de Gea, Ander Herrera and Marc Muniesa are just a small few of the long line of talent looking to play for La Roja in the not too distant future.

The task of overhauling development in England is already underway. Sir Trevor Brooking has already secured funding from the FA, and the U17 side has recently beaten Spain in the European Championships final. Coach John Peacock said after the triumph, “Spain have been the benchmark for European youth football but we think we are now starting to achieve what the Spanish team have been doing for years. At the FA we’ve just published a document called The Future Game which highlights the need to play possession football, to have players who are very comfortable on the ball and who can play out from the back.”

Undoubtedly, the talent is there. Jack Wilshere, Keiran Gibbs & Jack Rodwell stand out in the U21s. Benik Afobe, Connor Wickham and Bruno Pilatos were all part of the U17 winners last year and have bags of potential. The quality is unquestionable, but a new plan of action would produce more talent, more quantity. A plan of action that sees the FA and the Premier League working together; that sees the implementation of stricter rules ensuring young English players don’t get left behind the foreign exports; that sees youngsters enjoying their football (without parents and coaches on the touchline making it unbearably competitive, yelling the classic football clichés like down the line, push out, get stuck in). It might take 10 years, it could take 20. But eventually, English football would reap the benefits.