“Anyone who tells you they can spot a professional player at five years old is basically lying,” says former Talent ID manager Nick Levett, an expert in the eight to eleven age group.
Yet, across English football, professional clubs are scouting children as young as five, persuading 11-year-olds to sign contracts tied to private school education, and even offering houses to parents of teenagers who show potential.
But the big question is: are clubs doing this to genuinely develop players, or simply to stop rivals from signing them?
The Harsh Reality of Academy Football
English football academies have come under heavy criticism in recent years. Despite millions being invested, very few academy players are breaking into first teams. Instead, many clubs are relying on big-money transfers in their pursuit of instant success.
The figures are stark:
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There are currently around 12,500 players in the English academy system.
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Only 0.5% of under-nines at top clubs are likely to make it through to the first team.
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Dropout rates between ages 13 and 16 are alarmingly high, with some research suggesting it could be as high as 76%—similar to rugby union.
For most young players, the dream ends before it even begins.
From Farming to Fast Food Football
Historically, football clubs were rooted in their communities. They invested in young, local players, nurturing them through youth systems with a visible ladder to the first team. These clubs were the heart and soul of their towns and cities.
But modern football has shifted. Many clubs are now owned by individuals or groups with little connection to the local area. Instead of sowing seeds and patiently developing homegrown talent, the focus has become short-term success—a “fast food” approach to football.
Academies are packed with talented youngsters, but opportunities are scarce. Many capable players are overlooked as clubs chase instant results, often signing ready-made stars from abroad. This shift has not only stifled academy pathways but also damaged grassroots football, leaving many questioning whether the system is broken.
Are We Missing Late Developers?
The current model leaves little room for late bloomers. Players like Jamie Vardy, who rose through non-league and became an international star in his late 20s, highlight how talent can slip through the cracks.
Thousands of children are being released from academies each year, many of whom might thrive if given more time and the right environment. Instead, they are discarded by a system obsessed with identifying the next superstar as early as possible.
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Time for Change in English Football?
With foreign players already dominating the Premier League, opportunities for academy graduates are becoming even harder to come by. So, is it time for a rethink?
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Should academies focus more on developing players for the long term rather than stockpiling talent?
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Should grassroots football play a bigger role in bridging the gap to professional clubs?
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And should the scouting process be redesigned to stop overlooking potential late developers?
Final Whistle
The current academy model feels unsustainable and unfair. While a lucky few make it to the first team, thousands more are left behind, often without the right support.
At grassroots level, we believe more needs to be done to ensure every young player has a fair chance to develop and enjoy the game, not just those who peak early.
What do you think? Are professional clubs getting it wrong with kids, and what changes would you like to see in youth development? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
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Yes academies are getting it so so wrong! They fill their squads with the biggest strongest 7 year olds so that they win tournaments & leagues to justify the funding from the clubs. I coached from U8’s to U13’s & watched each player develop at their own pace. Some of the bigger lads were great in the early days as pure strength won football matches but as we moved through the age groups the smaller, often more skilful players came to the fore. Their pace along with lower centres of gravity won us so many games & the bigger tougher lads found roles further back as defenders or holding midfielders. So many smaller lads get overlooked at the early stage of their careers (one lad scored 112 goals in 117 games & never got looked at, only by every opposition manager in envy!) I know that if they’re good enough they’ll make it to the top one day but how many have slipped through the net & walked away from football? Vardy is a great example to any youngster who thinks because some narrow minded numpty seeking immediate success over actual development doesn’t give them a chance, no one will. We need to nurture more David Silvas, Sergio Agueros & Luis Suarezs in this country if we are to become a threat at international level again.
‘Fill their squads with the biggest strongest 7 year olds to win tournaments’ ??
In know way does a club gets its funding or Category status from how many games or Tournaments they win.
I can relate to this – My son got spotted by a coach from a top club at the age of 5 earlier this year, playing in a u7 game. (he is youngest in his year, so was a u7 player but was still just 5 at the time of this) he ran rings around every other player on that pitch (and still does in most games). The coach asked to take some details so he can invite him down to train with them. When I confirmed he was at u7 age group, he wasn’t interested. He said he thought he was u6, and sadly he was ‘too small’ for u7 and wont cope with the bigger/stronger lads. Despite the fact he’d just watched him play in an u7 game and no one could even get the ball off him. My lad is in fact very small for his age and sadly after hearing this guys comments I can only think he will get overlooked as you have pointed out. Sad really.
I would urge all parents to politely say not interested to any approach from scouts if your kid is between 7-12. Anything younger than that is just wrong on so many levels. Even 7-10 is still too young. Kids need to learn and develop but do it at boys club level or at the park with friends. If your kid is a good player he will still be a good player after 12 yrs old. Give kids the time and patience to learn. My boy is 7 and he a good wee player but hell his boys club team dont even take throwins, play offside, penalties or freekicks. In time they will learn these things and they will be better for it. Patience is key.
So if an academy asked for your son to sign for them at age 10 you’d say no??? Hurt your boys feelings? Doubt it! He maybe wouldn’t get that chance again. They maybe wouldn’t come back to watch him when he was 12/13/14…. Let them go I say, if they get released then so be it, at least they tried! My son plays for an academy now at 11 years old. He knows the ins and outs and knows he has to be at the top of his game at all times and yes it is hard and can be harsh. But that’s what he wants to do and has done since he was 5yrs old, so who am I to say no and crush his dream. Who knows, it may only last a short while and a better kid may come along but at least he has a smile on his face for now and is doing something he loves. And that’s all that matters in my opinion!
Completely agree, my son had just signed age 8 for academy u9’s, he’s been doing some training with them for the last year which got him recognised! He’s so proud of himself and loves pulling on the shirt! He was a great player at grassroots level but I’ve watched him progress and learn much more about the game. We’ve taught him that at the moment it doesn’t mean anything, it’s just a higher level of training and games. If it doesn’t go anywhere then at least he’s had that experience! Who am I to stand in his way? I think people are very bitter, and most that say they wouldn’t put their children through that, haven’t been in that position because realistically it isn’t your choice it’s the child’s
‘We’ve taught him that at the moment it doesn’t mean anything’?? You actually teach a kid that progressing from grassroots to proyouth doesnt mean anything lol god help the poor boy. Let me tell you what it means. It means the boy has earned and deserved a place at a higher level team which means he will know he can cut it which in turn breeds confidence. Football is ability, attitude, hard work and CONFIDENCE. Mix these things together and a kid can go a long way. Hope you dont tell the boy ‘if it doesn’t go anywhere atleast youve had the experience’. Wrong wrong wrong attitude to have
‘He maybe wouldnt get the chance again’?? Seriously?? If a kid is good enough at 7 he will certainly be good enough at 12, if not then the kid hasnt the right attitude. In my opinion that comes from the parents. My boy has just been offered the chance only this week to join an academy with another 2 teams looking at him. His grassroots club have been blocking all enquires about him since march and never told us the parents. Only just found this out. Under they circumstances he will be moving on. I was willing to let him learn at grassroots but it seems even at grassroots the name of the game is winning not developing kids.
Its a hard one for me, I’ve coached my eldest son in the past who will enter his 4th Season playing development football for our local football league team. Not at academy level at the moment but is improving each season and is 11 year old. The extra training he gets from this and playing for Wickersley youth Jamie Vardy’s old team is 2.5hrs training a week, then match days at around 1hr game time per week.
The question for me is this enough?? Academy players will probably get 6hrs a week including games this is 2.5hrs more then my son then pushing the gap potentially further away from academy football. How can an academy player not improve with this amount of attention and training against a current grass roots player?
On the other hand my 8 year old son who as only been playing football for his grass roots team since Christmas and now as 4 local teams wanting him and are constantly at games and tournaments to watch him, At the moment I want him to enjoy playing with his friends but its tempting to allow him to go in the future. I have a friend who was at an academy for years and left at 16 who is against it all but recently said I’d be daft not to let him go due to him being very good player.
I’m still non the wiser as an ex coach and parent what is the correct thing to do at their key age group, I am at the point were I am now letting them make the decisions regarding what they want to do in football. Wrongly or rightly.
My boy went through x9 academies, and played for 1 for over a year. I pulled him out of the system when, after taking him to a trial for an international scholarship, he vomited at the back of the car out of anxiety and stress. I failed him as a father by not noticing this earlier, but the stress and pressures piled on children is horrific. The fun had been totally syphoned from him and out of the game.
He now plays with his mates in lower leagues and has found his enjoyment in the game again. Pro clubs are mostly hideous, and the academies are conveyor belts so they can hit numbers for funding. They’re also beholden to their “catchment” area depending on the academy level they are UNTIL the age of 16. I’ve heard horror stories of young players being sold dreams only to be dropped like a stone at 16 because the club has brought in foreign players they couldn’t before because of the restrictions.
I’ve no faith whatsoever in the academy system in the UK. None.
This whole system is basically “bums on seats.” Parents are generally complicit in the system as they are desperate for their child ( and by association themselves) to have the recognition. The clubs are generally ruthless with the system and hack and cull the squads with little regard to the ones that are dumped. It is usually the Parents, who are themselves devastated, who are left to pick up the pieces.
Heard about one lad recently being pulled out of a training session at an academy and told he wasn’t wanted anymore. There doesn’t seem to be any care for the children and it’s as many have said just a conveyor belt. But parents are also to blame for pushing this endless dream of being a professional footballer and anything less and they have failed in life.
It’s totally wrong ! In most local clubs there’s not one single local player! Don’t the clubs realise that there is a lot of talent locally and if there is more local players the crowds would be bigger. Parents, family, friends would all be turning up to support them and local businesses would more likely get involved. When a division club is interested in a young player the first thing they want to know is how tall the parents are! They just look for kids that are going to be 6ft+ and can run 100m in around 10sec, the football they recon they can teach them!
Clubs recruit a profile which is invariably based around physical attributes such as speed. If you’re quick and half decent that’s a great starting point. Actually being able to play football can be taught later.
As an example, my son is a decent u7 who has played a few times against two Category 1 & 2 sides where they have more than matched those sides (same age as well, he’s not gone there a year older like a lot of these teams do). In my boys team is a lad whose best attribute is he’s quick. His passing, ball control, movement etc is non-existent. Guess who the scouts ranked as highest in their team? Yep, him. Subsequently seen he’s been off to other Category 1 teams to train etc.
Absolute true story – I used to coach one of the best teams in the region at a certain age group, playing in one of best leagues. A scout turned up and asked for the details of a player who hadn’t even played….just based the decision on the fact that it was an lad of African origin playing at the top level. The same club had asked for details of similar lads the season before when, at best, the said lads had been average in the game. When I asked why the scout wanted the details of those players, the response was “profiling”…..so yeah, based on experience, it’s seems that the day of the small white lad is numbered!
Absolute true story – I used to coach one of the best teams in the region at a certain age group, playing in one of best leagues. A scout turned up and asked for the details of a player who hadn’t even played….just based the decision on the fact that it was an lad of African origin playing at the top level. The same club had asked for details of similar lads the season before when, at best, the said lads had been average in the game. When I asked why the scout wanted the details of those players, the response was “profiling”…..so yeah, based on experience, it’s seems that the day of the small white lad is numbered!
I agree they are totally out of touch. It’s all done on statistics and profiling now. From talking to a professional coach, who has was at a top flight club. Money is invested into statistics, medical development and profiling. So if they look at youth player, it’s not done on their ability, but what their final outcome will be once they have been through puberty. That’s why they look at the parents disposition and the judgement goes on that. Ability and skills in their eyes can be taught, which is correct to a degree, but look at Messi and how he was overlooked, if they went on statistics with him. Then we would never have seen a legend in the game like him. So yes the scouting system and coaching system in the UK is still a bit disjointed. I think more and more youth players from the UK, are now venturing abroad with a different route into professional football. When you look across the continent, they seem to be more engaged with the scouting and development of youth players locally across all age groups. From visiting Barcelona CF and the La Masia academy, you see how they have it set up to development and nurture and thats not just the football as it’s has handball and basketball there, hence they are successful on all fronts. I think UK football needs to be more invested in grassroots development and adopt a more engaging approach and learn from the continent. The talent in the UK is being overlooked, but the MLS have started push overseas with their youth scouting especially in the UK and Europe. Offering scholarships to potential players and are going around the colleges and universities, looking to draft players in.
It’s time these big clubs got their act together and instead of having pound signs in front of their eyes they saw a human being instead I say let children be children how on earth could you explain to a five year old they wasn’t good enough it’s enough to destroy a child’s ambition in life for once let Sport be Sport 😔
Sadly, Grass Roots is the problem in my opinion! At nearly every age group, teams in the top leagues are run by parents of sporting companies hell bent on winning. How to win, hold trials and bring in decent but big players and you win matches. Great, the parent coaches ego is stroked because he has a winning / competitive team by default, the parents of the player love it as their child is in a winning team and has more chance of being paraded infront of a scout. The simple matter is Grass Roots is tripping itself up in many ways and there are leagues bring full of teams like this because lets be honest dad coaches are not good enough to get a small team wit skillfull player beating those teams based on size, speed and physicality. Especially not with 1-2 hours a week training!
My son went for Under 10 Trial for a team that had 250 players turn up. They never even looked at him play, they syphoned off all the big physical players and cast aside the small technical (and very smart) players. My son didn’t get invited back for 2nd Day Trials. He wasn’t bothered as we got offered place elsewhere, with a Sports Company running the show. His new team played the “Dad Constructed” team, full of size and physicality and beat them 5-3, and my son scoring a hat-trick and setting up another. All of my son’s team mates were, quicker, smarter and could play better football!
I know Grass Roots relies on volunteers, dads and helpers, but this problem is entrenched in society and its running through Grass Roots clubs because at the very start of sport small players are written off vs winning ugly.