UEFA Grassroots Week Puts Scotland's Volunteer Coaches and Referees in the Spotlight

UEFA Grassroots Week took place across Scotland this September, with the Scottish Football Supporters Association using the occasion to celebrate the thousands of coaches, volunteers, referees, teachers, parents, and club officials who keep community football running in towns and cities across the country. The piece highlighted a Kevin Keegan quote that captures the spirit of the week: "If you lose faith with the Grassroots Game, you lose the very soul of your sport and your purpose." For young players, it is easy to focus purely on the players on the pitch and forget everyone working behind the scenes to make matches possible in the first place. Every training session a young footballer attends depends on a volunteer coach giving up an evening, a referee turning up for a game that pays little or nothing, and often a parent driving across town to make it happen. Grassroots Week is also a good moment for young players themselves to think about giving back down the line. Many professional and semi-professional players started out being coached by volunteers in their own community, and plenty return years later to coach the next generation themselves. The cycle only continues if new volunteers keep stepping up. Any young player reading this should take a moment to thank their own coach or club volunteer this week. It costs nothing, but it is exactly the kind of appreciation that keeps grassroots football alive for the next generation coming up behind them. Source: Scottish Football Supporters Association (https://scottishfsa.org/uefa-grassroots-week-is-here-and-its-time-to-celebrate-the-very-heart-of-our-game/)