Over 13 million people play football outside of the professional game in the UK.
For some of them, the possibility of professional contracts with professional clubs is a very real possibility. But for youngsters, in particular those who idolize the players in the mainstream leagues or their home town teams, only a minority will become professional footballers.
But of those with the talent to play our beautiful game, how many are chasing an impossible dream?
Contrary to popular belief, the job of a footballer is one that starts from an early age. You can't just turn around and decide you want to be a football player anymore. Especially when it has recently become virtually impossible to get signed to a professional club after players reach a certain age.
The standard of the top-tiers in the English game now calls for clubs to catch players early in the development process. This way, they can be nurtured and adapted to a particular way of playing and thinking.
Clubs have gradually become addicted to grooming young talent in order to make the best professionals and today it is a fundamental process of a club's production.
On the opposite end of the spectrum are the youngsters that chase the dream. A dream that not only consists of playing their beloved sport for a living, but comes alongside the glamorous lifestyle that a career in football can offer a teenager in today’s times. An irresistible combination for both players who have what it takes and those who don't.
I'm still amazed at the sight of seven year olds in a disciplined four-four-two formation, playing on half a full-sized pitch in my local area every Sunday. If any confirmation was needed that long gone are the days of kids playing football for fun, this was it.
Parents forcing their children to play Sunday League football is a risky and frequent occurrence across the UK. Unfortunately for the majority of them, they are not in a situation to realise that their aspiring stars are already part of a brutal cycle.
A cycle orchestrated by clubs in the higher brackets of professional football that will end any hopes many of them have of ever taking their football to the top level because let's face it, the amount of players in the highest category of professional football are in a minuscule minority.
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about 1 month ago
Very true Ricky. Shame to hear that parents force their children to play football in the UK.
about 1 month ago
Really great article again Ricky, in fact not just the UK but every other top footballing nation probably has similar problems where there is a lot of pressure on youth to become professionals rather than just enjoy the game. Great piece.
from about 1 month ago
In the United States you see the same issue with American football, baseball, golf, etc. - parents forcing their kids to play a sport with the hopes of having the kid become a professional athlete and kids wanting to become professional athletes and live the "lifestyle" they see on TV.
about 1 month ago
Great piece Ricky! Its the same case with cricket in India! But here not many parents actually want their kids to pursue a career in sports unless ofcourse he's exceptionally talented...rather they force kids to prefer education over sports! But as a professional player at junior level, I can relate with the message you mean to convey! Its a chase of impossible dream! Sadly though, money, not the joy of the game, is what inspires kids to play sports today!
about 1 month ago
again great article ricky, and very true. i'm reading this article and i'm thinking 'yep, that's me'. since i was 7 i have been forced to play sunday league, and to be honest it's not something i want to do now im 16. im also good at table tennis, and attend a national centre of excellence. my real dream is to become an elite table tennis player, but with my parents constant fixation with my sunday league and getting scouted, my dreams of being an elite tt player are most probably ruined.
from about 1 month ago
Sorry to diverge from the subject, but I love table tennis too! I only got into it last year, but it would be cool if there was a table tennis section in b/r.
Sorry to hear about your parent's pressure Yoosof. I hope you'll keep trying to become an elite tt player one day.
about 1 month ago
Well done Ricky! Dev sums things up for me. Its a similar story with India and cricket. Great piece mate! Keep 'em coming
about 1 month ago
Excellent article, Ricky. Top notch. It's a shame that so many people are chasing an impossible dream but there are a lot of people out there much like them.
about 1 month ago
Great article man. Thanks for the heads up on it.
about 1 month ago
Great article Ricky. People playing for the dream of wealth or lifestyle are wasting their time. The greatest players play for the love of the game and thats it. I play for free I'm sure Wayne Rooney or lionel Messi would too if they were as mediocre as me!
about 1 month ago
I swear Ryan, you are rasing the standard of writing on B/R.....
On the issue, one needs to be of a certain age before even thinking about going pro. Gone are the days when a 20 year old trialist is given a contract after impressing. Football clubs tend to think that the younger the lad the better and once a lad is above the age of 15/16 then he better get other aspirations because he will (9 times out of 10) not make it as pro, as you highlighted...
Contrary to that, my older brother is a pro footballer back in Denmark. He was a trailist at the age of 21 and after he impressed the reserve coach, the first team coach came down to watch a reserve match and he was impressed too. A month later, a contract was offered. Its a tiny contract compared to the English league and it is still much lower than what they earn in the Championship, but none-the-less, he made it professionally at the age of 21!
In UK, it is much, much harder. The talent one is competing with is much stronger and the quality in the premier league and championship is much higher too. Kids in the UK, are dellusional about what its like and what it takes to become and/or be a pro footballer. As you mentioned, they aspire to the wrong things. The life-style of a footballer should not be the motivating factor but simply, the love for playing football.
Great article man....
from about 1 month ago
I mean Ricky.. Damn why do I keep doing this lol...
from about 1 month ago
lol i'm getting used to it!
about 1 month ago
Hey Ricky.
One thing I think we can all agree on is that football IS becoming more serious at an earlier age nowadays. The evidence of this is the simple fact that there are more youngsters breaking 'youngest player ever to play for...' records than ever before.
Overall, this should be a good thing for football, raising the general level of the game. But as Ricky justly implies, at what cost?
Thoughtful article, unique topic choice and great commentary. You don't write much, but when you do, it's always of high quality. Well done mate.
from about 1 month ago
thanks appreciate it and agree with to point about footie getting serious at a younger age.
about 1 month ago
Grat issue to tackle Ricky, this is the best article I have read on here in a good while, really great points and thoughts.
about 1 month ago
Hey Rcky, nice article, especially interested to hear of your youth being forced to play in a rigid 4-4-2 formation. Are England's problems at international level a result of this pressure? its an interesting concept. in australia we've recently adopted the use of small sided games at youth level, the focus being to develop technique and encourage a love of the game. smaller pitches, with equal playing time granted, and no keeping score, to encourage kids to enjoy themselves, rather than become too wrapped up in winning.
about 1 month ago
Hey Ricky,
Great article. Its sad what parents force kids to do sometimes. You can say the same with basketball of football in the States too.
potd for me.
about 1 month ago
This type of player development is seeping into other nations now, especially those in which the big European leagues draw bundles of players from. It's interesting to see how first world countries draft and train players.
In Latin America especially, football is still that romantic game played in playgrounds and on beaches with scouts roaming the nation in order to find hidden talent. A recent example of that is Carlos Salcido, who walked on to a third division team in Mexico at the age of 19. He's now anchoring PSV Eindhoven's back line less than a decade later.
about 1 month ago
Great piece.. very true with a lot of sports in different countries.
about 1 month ago
Nice peice and many very valid points. Unlike some peoples belief that the reason players cant make it once past the age of 15/16 being because clubs are fiocussed on young players and just wont give you a chance - i think the main reason is that they are probably not nearly good enough. it is very difficult for a young player to "slip through the net" there are exceptions of course, great to hear that solomans brother made it at 21! However if you havent had the level of attention and coaching of a top academy from the age of 12/13 upwards, then by the time you get to late teens you simply wont be good enough.
As for not playing for fun, i think this is a major problem in th UK - parents and pushy coaches care more about the result than playing football, and this is why we lack so much crativity and flair in the uk. By the time players are 13 or 14 players just havent been playing proper passing football. interesting to hear they play with no score in Oz (maybe the socceroos should do that too ;-)
about 1 month ago
hey rick
Top article lad i was pretty impressed:)
keep on writing the good shit:)
about 1 month ago
Good stuff Ricky, and while you are right that the majority of players are chasing an impossible dream, there are always examples out there that just show why so many are willing to do so.
My team Peterborough United for example have signed many players from non-league in recent years. One, Chris Whelpdale, was playing for Billericay town and working in his local supermarket when Posh signed him up.
He has since got promoted from League 2, and is now a regular first team player in League 1, playing in front of 10000 people and probably earning at least 1k a week.
Another is Paul Coutts, who was signed from Cove Rangers in the Scottish Highland League just in the summer. He is only 19 but was man of the match against Leeds at the weekend in front of 13500.
Finally there is Sergio Torres, who Posh signed from Wycombe in the summer. He is an Argentinian who moved here just to try and play football, he was playing non-league and working in Boots Chemists when Wycombe signed him, then after rave reviews for a couple of season, Posh paid £100k for him.
Just 3 examples of dreams that have come true, and that is why so many will continue to chase the dream, however tiny the chances of it being achieved.
from about 1 month ago
Those are great examples Simon, you would like to think anyone with the ability can get into good teams it's nice to here of players that can play getting far even without being through the whole system.
about 1 month ago
great article mate, football should be played for fun and enjoyment not preshure from the pairents.
about 1 month ago
Really great article Ricky (again),
Just had to laugh when I saw the part on young kids playing 4-4-2 formations. I was at a 2nd Division game in Ireland recently and they have the kids on at half time playing across half the pitch. It was one of the funniest, nicest sights you'll see. These 7yr old boys and girls running around like a cluster of bees after a ball having so much fun. Its a pity kids these age can't enjoy it like this all the time, parents can put so much pressure on little johnny to succeed.
about 1 month ago
Very insightful, Ricky.
It's not good that parents force ther children to play football. But sometimes, it may just be for fun and the parents want their children to have a passion for the sport. .
Your article is crammed with truth and sense.
5* + a Pick. :)
about 1 month ago
good article Ricky.
about 1 month ago
I was a promising player until I did both my knees in and ended my career there and then, but I always felt that there was far too much pressure to make it, from parents and friends and even my coach, he expected international level performances every week.
Now I suffer every day with chronic knee pain and will probably lose them one day, all because of money. Greed has crippled me, brilliant stuff mate, again. Pick and stars galore.
from about 1 month ago
Where you also ever in a situation where you found yourself not actually enjoying your footie because of the whole formation thing and how youngster where taught how to play a high level of football?
about 1 month ago
An absolutely fantastic read, Ricky, covered all aspects.
about 1 month ago
I guess we are lucky in America for being a "new" footballing nation. I coach U13 and U14 girls soccer, and I can tell you that all of those girls are just out there for the fun of the game and the comradarie they have with one another. It's a bit more fierce for the boys teams, but most of them are still just out there to have fun.
In America, most of our kids have a similiar goal when they get to high school ... be good enough to play in college, and if they are lucky, get a free ride for school. The idea of playing professional soccer, either in the MLS or in Europe, is still very new to our country. I kind of like that. Love the sport for the sport, not for the business.
about 1 month ago
Great read Ricky.
about 1 month ago
Vey interesting article, you must have put in a lot of research into this one!
Another top class article.
about 1 month ago
As an Indian, it's very wasy for me to relate to everything this article says. Probably, cricket in India is a bit bigger:) The crux of the matter is, if kids at age 6, 7 or 8 are over-trained, their innate style and character (as a footballer) gets suppressed. And though the general standard of the game might improve a lot in a football-crazy nation, THIS is not a healthy trend from the kids' perspective. Simply because if they do not enjoy playing football like nothing else at age 7 or 10, then they probably never will. And that's not how you make a Wayne Rooney!
One last thing, in India there are millions of people wanting to make it big in cricket. And even though a lot of people fall in the wayside, cricket still remains an intrinsic part of their adult life. I think if the same holds good with England, then there really isn't any harm with that. Only, football should be the kid's choice and not the parent's. Bet Yoosoof will agree:)
Nice article, Ricky!!! Topic was different and refreshingly so. I found your content professional as well.......
about 1 month ago
amazing article, one of the best i've read since i joined up. I think that youngsters do find themselves in a position where they fall out of academies and then its like, well what do i do with my life now. many are being kidded that they can become pros but its a dream worth pursuing than not considering at all.
6 days ago
It`s so sad that kids are being forced to play football for money making, but it`s even more sad, dysfunctional and frightening that clubs are only signing players that are U13-U15, they`re responsible for all these crime against children who`re suppose to be going to school instead of chasing a professional career at an early age, i believe that the court of law should set out a law against such practise, its child abuse and i as a footballer would totally disagree with the saying that if you`re 18-25 you can`t play professional football anymore, cause that is an absolute nonesense, i`m afraid that those that are responsible for these new trends are killing the game of football in totality.
Because of these new trends in football we would get to miss so many naturally talented footballers who are not opportune to make it at that early age of 13-15 years, i say shame on to those that are setting these destructive trends in this beautiful sport called football.
Best regards and many thanks for your wonderful amazing article, please do keep it up.
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