Football
EFDS is working with the Football Association and the network of County Football Associations to help bring the various disability football programmes fully into the ‘core business’ of the organisation.
In partnership, we are helping to shape the direction of the FA’s 2013-2017 Disability Football Strategy and to secure support for the sport's vision from the wider footballing community.
EFDS is working with the FA in the following principal areas:
- Assisting a number of County Football Associations (CFAs) with dedicated player recruitment projects and sustainable competition structures.
- Supporting the delivery of the FA England Talent Day programme
- Coordinating the gathering of intelligence from the National Disability Sport Organisation (NDSOs) network that will potentially allow support to be assigned to impairment-specific player populations
- Designing with them and BUCS a HE/ FE volunteer recruitment programme intended to fill known gaps in CFA capacity
Football Active People Survey 5 top facts
- 1.25% (115,800) people take part once a week, a 0.1% increase since APS2 (2007/2008)
- 2.15% (198,700) take part once a month, a significant 0.4% increase in the last 12 months
- Participation in football among disabled people is lower than that of non-disabled people across all age groups and particularly in people less than 30
- Participation in football is highest among people with a social or behavioural issues and lowest among people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
- Football has the third highest rate of participation in sport among disabled people, lower than in the overall population where it is ranked 2nd
Key Contacts
Jeff Davis- FA National Development Manager, Disability Football
James Watkins- FA National Club and Coach Project Officer, Disability Football
Regional Disability Talent Officers
For more information on disability football- visit their website