Football for Schools (F4S) is an ambitious program run by FIFA, in collaboration with UNESCO, which aims to contribute to the education, development, and empowerment of approximately 700 million children around the world. It seeks to make football more accessible to both boys and girls by incorporating football activities into the education system, in partnership with relevant authorities and stakeholders.
The program promotes four life skills and competencies through football:
* Personal Understanding (intrapersonal & cognitive skills), including self-confidence, self-respect, self-awareness, self-control, self-reliance, critical thinking, decision-making and growth mindset.
* Relationships (interpersonal skills), including assertiveness, empathy, friendship, communication, peer support and relationship skills.
* Living in the Wider World (active citizenship skills), including respect for difference, understanding of sustainable development, values of equality, community and leadership skills.
* Health & Wellbeing (healthy behaviors), including physical activity, mental health promotion, healthy decision-making, risk assessment, nutrition, hygiene and personal safety.
The official FIFA Football for Schools app helps teachers throughout the world bring the game of football to children of all ages in a playground environment. Based on a “let the game be the teacher” philosophy, the app equips teachers with a plug-and-play program that provides hours and weeks of age-appropriate football activities for physical education lessons within the school curriculum.
Highlights include 360 short videos designed for age-specific child development stages (4–7 years, 8–11 years, and 12–14 years) and 40 physical education sessions divided into fun warmup games, skill development games, and a final game incorporating variations of football. Each video, which lasts 60 to 90 seconds, explains the organization of players and what they will need (such as balls and other materials).
The app also includes illustrations to show how exercises can be adapted to meet the needs of individual schools or classes, based on pitch size, equipment, and the number of students in the class.
The games focus on simple class organization and the involvement, inclusion, and engagement of all children, with opportunities for both basic skill execution and challenging progressions. Teachers can select an individual session/lesson or a program of sessions in line with football’s place in their school’s curriculum.
The teacher does not have to be a qualified football coach to benefit from the Football for Schools app. It can be used by any physical education teacher or adult in a similar role. The idea is that after initially mirroring the sessions and exercises in the app, teachers will be inspired to adapt them and then create their own as they become more familiar with the organization and setup of games.
Teachers can download the free F4S app on the App Store or get it on Google Play.