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UEFA Executive Committee Ratifies Grassroots Charter Pilot Projects of Five Associations

The UEFA Executive Committee has today formally ratified the programmes of five member associations who have been piloting the new UEFA Grassroots Charter, which has been established following the UEFA Grassroots Football Declaration made at the UEFA Congress 2004.

The five national associations, whose pilot schemes have now been formally ratified, are England, Germany, Norway, Scotland and the Netherlands.

UEFA Grassroots Charter guidelines have now been produced and other associations will have the opportunity to join the UEFA endorsement programme. The main elements of the work done by the various pilot associations included: creating a leaders’ programme, which means ensuring that the coaches/leaders at the junior grassroots level have reached a sufficient level for coaching juniors; a players’ programme, offering training opportunities for different age groups (children 5-12 and youths 12-19); and a philosophy/infrastructure element, which means promoting football for all, fair play and anti-racism, as well as investing in infrastructure and organisation.

Additional financial support for the grassroots programme has come courtesy of UEFA’s HatTrick programme, where all member associations can request financial assistance from UEFA for a number of projects, including grassroots and in particular the mini-pitch project. Through the HatTrick funding, UEFA will also organise regional grassroots workshops involving all 52 member associations. The purpose of these workshops will be to further promote and to implement the Grassroots Charter throughout Europe as part of the overall UEFA grassroots programme.

The UEFA Grassroots Football Declaration has, at its core, three main pillars to help support grassroots football throughout Europe. Firstly, to invest in grassroots football, secondly to promote the work done by member associations in all areas of grassroots and, finally, to assist with the development of national grassroots programmes.

UEFA President Lennart Johansson said: “Grassroots football provides the foundation of our game. If the grassroots are not cultivated, football at all levels will suffer, and it is UEFA’s desire to help the associations develop thriving grassroots programmes.”

Note to Editors:
Following the work done by the UEFA Grassroots Working Group, created in November 2002, the UEFA Grassroots Programme was then approved by the UEFA Executive Committee in Athens in February 2003. Further work was carried out via the Working Group at various meetings in 2003 and after the UEFA Technical Committee endorsed the project in October 2004, the UEFA Executive Committee finally approved the Charter on 17 November 2004.