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David James on how Covid has impacted grassroots football

29th September 2020
Posted by Aston Avery

There are more than 38,000 grassroots football clubs across the UK, powered by millions of young players’ dedication to the ‘beautiful game’.

A report published today reveals more than 10% – or around 4,000 clubs say they’ll struggle to survive the next 12 months.

The Switch Before Pitch Campaign aims to support grassroots clubs and their communities to save and raise money. At the centre of the campaign is a list of ways that players can save energy, and what those savings equate to in terms of new football equipment, such as bibs, balls and cones, through to team strips and new goals.

Across the UK, 21% of parents said their child had struggled to cope without football, rising to 25% amongst children aged 9-11. Three in five parents of younger players (5-8 years) said their children benefit from the physical and mental health elements of playing grassroots football (60%). This rises to 70% for players aged 12-16.

Aston spoke to David James, former England goalkeeper and FA cup winner to discuss the research and the campaign in further detail as well as what people could be doing to help the grassroots football teams during this difficult time.

Photo by Sandro Schuh on Unsplash