Girls in football: The stats

4 November 2019

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How do the opportunities for girls and boys compare at Premier League clubs?

Newsround has learned that there is a gap in development opportunities between boys and girls when it comes to early professional coaching.

We contacted every Premier League side to ask them when boys and girls can start in their academy set-ups.

We found that the majority of clubs have an in-house academy which includes 'pre-academy' coaching options for boys as young as five.

However, only Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea told us about their pre-academy options for girls between the ages of five and eight.

12 teams in the Premier League host 'Regional Talent' centres for girls. Under the English FA's performance pathway, girls can start playing at these academies at nine years old
The Regional Talent Clubs are ranked based on what they offer to the girls. It starts at Tier 3 and goes as high as Tier 1
Bournemouth, Burnley, Newcastle United, Norwich and Tottenham Hotspur do not have an in-house academy system in place for girls.
We were able to find evidence that 14 Premier League sides have a 'pre-academy'. Boys are officially allowed to join academies at eight years old but lots of clubs have coaching opportunities for boys as young as five.
Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool told us about their 'pre-academy' options for girls between the ages of five and eight. Everton told us about their feeder group from the age of eight.