FA reveals goal to encourage more ethnic minority players into football with community schemes

Representatives from the Football Association held an event in Valley Parade last night, where they revealed plans to increase the involvement of under-represented Asian communities in the game.

It was the last of several events held in cities across the UK with high Asian populations to get feedback on how the sport can appeal to more minority players, and it will eventually be used to form a national plan.

Of the 3,500 professional football players in the country, only around five are from South East Asian backgrounds, something the FA hopes to change.

Although the association admits it will not change the makeup of top clubs overnight, they hope that in a decade’s time it will result in Asian players being a regular sight in the Premier League.

Kevin Coleman, inclusion projects co-ordinator, said the FA project aimed to both encourage more young Asians to get involved in the game, and for clubs to look to the often overlooked Asian communities when searching for their next generations of stars.

Proposals by the FA could see community development centres set up in areas with high minority populations. The centres would be linked with local clubs, who supply coaches to teach the fundamentals of the game to young people who may not normally play football. The locations of the centres and times they operate would be decided by the communities themselves.

Small, local clubs with predominantly Asian players would be offered FA support, with Mr Coleman saying: “We want to work with clubs to enable them to go where they want to go.”

Talent scouts will be encouraged to go and visit grassroots clubs many currently bypass when looking for the next generation of star, including in areas with high Asian populations.

Female players will also be offered specialised training sessions to encourage young girls who may see football as a male-only sport, and Asian role models in the sport will be given more of a spotlight.