Aston Villa Academy and Foundation have joined forces to celebrate South Asian Heritage Month, commemorating South Asian cultures, histories and communities.
As part of the celebrations, running from July 18 – August 17, Villa’s Academy and Foundation organised Emerging Talent and community football festivals at the AVFC Inner City Academy.
The sessions were designed to provide more playing and training opportunities to British South Asian players from local grassroots clubs and community organisations we are currently working with.
The club also hosted the Next Gen Cup on Saturday, August 3. The competition offers India’s brightest young talents from the Indian Super League the chance to compete with equivalent age-group teams from Premier League Academies and the South African Premier Soccer League.
Many of the clubs who engaged with the activation festivals have been identified through the Foundation’s Everybody’s Game project.
Funded by the Premier League and the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA), Everybody’s Game is designed to bring more inclusive opportunities for British South Asian communities and women and girls to get involved across mainstream football, either as players, volunteers, coaches or referees.
The project also supports the Premier League’s South Asian Action Plan, which launched in 2022 to help address the underrepresentation of British South Asian players within the Academy system.
Leaving a Lasting Legacy
Since the inception of the initiative, 12 coaches have completed 6-8 weeks of bespoke mentoring with the Foundation’s Football Development Coordinators, Viqas Yusuf and Wai Wan.
Ayed Galeb is one such coach, who came into coaching with local grassroots club, Bright Futures Association, with no prior experience.
Through his engagement with the programme, he has now been able to confidently lead engaging and insightful training sessions with his team, bridging gaps in his knowledge of coaching to develop his players further.
Hear more about Ayed’s experience with Everybody’s Game…
Aspirational Workforce
Prior to joining the Foundation in April 2024, Football Development Coordinator Viqas Yusuf was also a grassroots coach with Birmingham Youth Sports Academy.
Talking about his impact on the project, Viqas shared: “There are many barriers South Asian players may face that put them at a disadvantage, such as lack of awareness, cultural conflict or football not being seen to add value.
“Football is a special game as it brings people from all walks of life together to embrace the beautiful game and develop social skills. The Everybody’s Game project has been fantastic, by not only providing the facilities for community organisations and clubs to use, but also helping to bridge the gap and connect parents and guardians to witness their children live out opportunities of a lifetime.
“Education plays a big part in what we as coaches try to instil into the community. We acknowledge it’s a work in progress but if we can change lives for the better then we will look at that as a success. Role models are very few and far to find in some communities and it is our duty as coach educators to provide the youth with someone who can give guidance and direction.
“During my time as a grassroots coach, I understand the values and meaning behind working for these clubs. It’s more than teaching kids how to just play football, but to also mentor them with life skills and keeping them off the streets.
“I believe with the help of the Everybody’s Game programme we can help further develop community organisations and local communities in many areas through our continued partnership and engagement.”
