Monday 03 Oct 2022

Irish FA Foundation supports UEFA Grassroots Week

The Irish FA Foundation is again delighted to contribute to UEFA Grassroots Week by highlighting some unique events to promote and foster grassroots football across Northern Ireland.

As part of the celebration, UEFA invites its member associations to promote, facilitate, encourage and inspire all forms of football during this special week.

The week kicked off with the Multi-Ethnic Sport and Culture NI’s Festival of Football at Ormeau Park, encouraging sports participation with BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnics) asylum Seekers and refugees.

On Monday 26 September, Irish FA Foundation staff delivered a coaching session at Fleming Fulton School as part of the Disability Football: SEN School Coaching Programme. The programme ensures that coaching, competitive and representative opportunities are created for people with disabilities to get involved.

Following a successful pilot scheme, the Grassroots and Football Books initiative took place at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park on Thursday 29^th September. The initiative aims to encourage children by using the power of football to engage with reading.

Northern Ireland Senior Women’s team players Abbie Magee and Caragh Hamilton surprised the primary school children of St Pauls’ and Fane Street who attended the launch, leading them in a skills session.

The week came to a close at Windsor Park with the launch of Our People and Clubs online platform. The platform has been created to support local grassroots football clubs and the people within them by providing a range of educational resources, helping clubs develop off the pitch so they can thrive on the pitch.