³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

A plan to tackle the under-representation of British Asians within football academies has been launched by the Premier League and anti-racism group Kick It Out.

The South Asian Action Plan hopes to better identify British Asian players at a younger age.

Data published by the Professional Footballers' Association earlier this year showed there were just 115 players from a British Asian background out of almost 15,000 players in academy and professional football.

An academy is where young players are trained by a professional club, who have full-time coaches, and play in matches against other teams in a similar age group.

Players at academies can be offered a full time contract at 18 or be released and have to find another club or leave the game.

The South Asian Action Plan (SAAP) will focus on players entering the academy system in the Under-9 to Under-11 age groups, when most boys join a club.

There will also be research to understand what the barriers are to South Asian players joining academies.

In the Premier League there are just four players on full-time deals - Hamza Choudhury (Leicester), Zidane Iqbal (Manchester United), Arjan Raikhy (Aston Villa) and Kam Kandola (Wolverhampton Wanderers).

Zidane Iqbal made history in December 2021 when he became the first British South Asian footballer to play for Manchester United at senior level.

Figures suggest that, despite making up about 7% of the British population, only 0.25% of professional footballers are from any British Asian background.

South Asian Emerging Talent football festivals will take place in London and at Leicester City's training ground in May where boys aged between eight and 12 from grassroots clubs will get to play matches in front of academy staff in a Premier League environment.

Sanjay Bhandari, Kick It Out chairperson, said: "The South Asian Action Plan is a crucial step forward to build on recent successes and develop sustainable pathways into the game for South Asian players."

Mr Bhandari also said that the number of South Asians on the pitch in elite football doesn't match the "population or popularity of football amongst the British South Asian community".

"This is a generational opportunity to create change and inspire the next generation. We look forward to working with the Premier League and our other partners across the game to deliver it."