UEFA Grassroots Workshop up and running

The 8th UEFA Grassroots Workshop has kicked off in Hamburg as a packed three-day schedule got under way with the opening ceremony followed by a wide variety of presentations, a practical session and an update on grassroots news from around Europe.

Warm welcome
The workshop was opened by UEFA technical director Andy Roxburgh, who passed the floor to Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, UEFA vice-president, to welcome the attendees. In a far-reaching speech, Mayer-Vorfelder emphasised the importance of grassroots football, saying: "Professional football and grassroots football are two sides of the same coin." German Football Association (DFB) president Dr Theo Zwanziger then added his own words of welcome, outlining the importance of the event – "Grassroots is an important challenge, not only for sport but for society in general, and any exchange of ideas can only be beneficial" – sentiments that were echoed by Hamburg sports senator Dr Karin von Welck.

Development issues
The first presentation of the workshop was entitled 'Child's play: development issues', with Roxburgh taking the group through some of the key challenges facing grassroots football and offering specific thoughts on children's football. His presentation spanned matters such as phases of development, games, methods, leadership, influences, fairness, aims, safety, participation and potential, reminding his audience that they should remember at all times: "You don't coach football, but youngsters who play football."

German example
The morning session concluded by focusing, appropriately, on Germany – with a presentation on the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup and the implementation of a legacy concept for children from Steffi Jones, the much-decorated former international who is president of the local organising committee for the tournament. DFB director Willi Hink also gave a talk – Children's Football in Germany – which covered the association's statute and development plan, how they propose to develop as the demographic make-up of Germany's population changes, and their future strategies and measures.

Practical session
The first part of the afternoon was taken up with a practical session at the Arena Hamburg, home of Hamburger SV, looking at age-appropriate training and using the club's Under-12 children to run through a wide-ranging series of drills. Divided into two parts, the first half of the session was conducted by Dieter Schrader, from the regional association of Lower Saxony, who gave an example of the sort of training provided by the DFB Mobil, the association's football van which travels around the country supplying coaches and materials for children. Hamburg U12 coach Pit Reimers then put on a session showing best practice for age-appropriate training.



Grassroots news
Day one was brought to a close with a round-up of grassroots football news, with two presentations highlighting issues in different countries across Europe. Kelly Simmons – national game manager at the Football Association – talked about increasing girls' participation using the English example, making particular reference to the FA Women's Football Strategy 2008-2012, before Anders Levinsen, leader of Cross Cultures, delivered an update on the Fun Football project. A lively discussion followed involving German legends Uwe Seeler and Hansi Müller, entitled 'Learning to play football', with the latter explaining: "You don't just have to have talent, but something more – diligence or obsessiveness – and that makes the difference."

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