EDUKICK UK PRO TRAIL SHOWCASE EVENTS
It is very difficult for foreign nationals to get the opportunity of professional football in the UK due to strict visa controls. We aim to develop your football skills as much as possible so that you can be considered for football opportunities in your country, or in Europe and the United States. We have ties to many clubs around the world. Due to the difficulty for our academy players to sign professionally in England . All EduKick Football academy England players are ALSO considered for our PRO FOOTBALL TRIAL OPPORTUNITIES in Spain and Portugal (held twice annually), where non-EU footballers can sign professionally more easily than in the UK.
Exposure to professional clubs is provided on a constant basis throughout the duration of our Edukick UK Football Academy Football programmes in the following 3 key ways:
Competitive Friendly matches
On a regular basis the Edukick Football Academy England Football Program squad will play matches against professional and semi-professional club youth academy or development squads or against local North West College teams whose coaches are also scouts for professional and semi-professional clubs. These matches provide a regular opportunity for participants to showcase their talents directly and indirectly to clubs. Follow up matches are often organized later in the season so the clubs and College scouts can measure the progress of our participants. These fixtures also give the players the opportunity to put into practice the work they have done on the pitch through the year and review their performance and progress. These fixtures are divided into 2 distinct categories: development fixtures, where all available players will have time in play, and goal fixtures, where in earlier weeks, and development fixtures, players have a hard time being selected to the game team. They have to work hard, as they would in professional sports.
Professional Club guest coaching sessions
Edukick Football Academy England has good working relationships with many professional clubs in the North West of England and each month the Academy squad will receive guest coaching sessions from professional club coaches. These sessions may take place at either the academy training ground or the professional club. Edukick UK Football School also has a close link with the PFA (professional footballers association) where we take regular sessions with their members. It is important that our participants are exposed to all levels of the professional game in England and these sessions help our participants to measure their ability levels with those required of a professional club Academy player as well as providing them with a direct trial exposure opportunity. The guest sessions will be conducted by either the PFA coaching sessions or a selection of local professional clubs.
Showcase Events
All Edukick UK Football School Football Academy participants are entered into the showcase event that the Academy host in Manchester. Participants are given the maximum opportunity to expose their talents in front of the invited professional & semi-professional club scouts & coaches from the UK and around the world. In the weeks leading up to the showcase event our players will prepared ready. At the end of the showcase event each player will receive direct feedback. During the following week after the event Edukick Football Academy England will be contacted by the scouting/coaches to arrange individual follow up trials for selected participants.
Opportunities for Non EU / UK Student Players
Due to English FA regulations and UK visa restrictions it is incredibly difficult for non EU / UK citizens to be allowed to play professionally for a UK club. The restrictions are even greater for players who are under 18 years of age. EDUKICK UK FOOTBALL SCHOOL is aware of these limitations and so will always expressly inform prospective student players and their parents about these at the enquiry stage. However, there are some opportunities and benefits available to non EU / UK players that are worthy of note:
-Tracking Players in Home Country – Exceptionally talented players may be tracked in the longer term by an interested UK professional club. Big clubs have a global network of scouts who monitor the progress of certain players in their home countries. Should such a club then wish to pursue such a player, they would then need to work with the player and their parents directly to find a legitimate way of making this happen.
-The IPSO scouts – EDUKICK UK FOOTBALL SCHOOL works closely with the International Professional Scouting Organisation (www.ipsofooty.com) which provides professional scout training and tale I.D. courses all around the world. IPSO scout trainers work with scouts from professional clubs, sometimes a number of clubs. EDUKICK UK FOOTBALL SCHOOL contracts IPSO scouts to attend our Showcase Events and Talent I.D. courses and provide a written report on each individual player taking part. If they spot exceptional talent at any of these events, they will send a report
onto any of the clubs, outside of the UK, that they represent for them to consider. It is then up to the club to assess this and see if they wish to or can take it any further.
-EDUKICK FOOTBALL ACADEMY ENGLAND is building links with scouts who work for non-EU / UK clubs – scouts representing clubs from outside of the UK have already attended our events. We are working to bring more such scouts to our events in the future.
-Improved prospects for a player in their home country – By attending EDUKICK UK FOOTBALL SCHOOL football coaching a player will improve his fitness, reading of the game and football skill and ability. In short, we will make him or her a better player. We help all our players to build an online football cv and having attended our academy only enhances that cv. Similarly, if a player is identified as talented by a UK club, even if that club is prevented from pursuing the player further, this is a great attribute to have on a football cv. Many of our players have gone onto to sign pro contracts with teams back home after attending our school.
Please note: Because of the difficulty for our academy players to sign professionally in England. All EduKick UK Football School academy players are ALSO considered for our PRO FOOTBALL TRIAL OPPORTUNITIES in Spain and Portugal (held twice annually), where non-EU footballers can sign professionally more easily than the UK.
