Sunday 1st March 2020

This week the Football Association released new Heading Guidance, covering all age groups between Under 6 and Under 18. The guidance, which covers training sessions, is being introduced with immediate effect.

The new Heading Guidance follows the publication of the FA and PFA-funded FIELD study in October 2019 which led to the FA establishing a Research Taskforce to look into possible changes to coaching heading.

The updated Heading Guidance, the full version of which parents and coaches are invited to read here, will see the following changes:

1. No heading in training in the foundation phase (i.e. for children of primary school age)
2. A graduated approach to heading training for children in the development phase (Under 12 to Under 16)
3. Required ball sizes for training and matches for each age group
4. No changes to heading in matches, taking into consideration the limited number of headers in youth games

Last modified on Sunday 1st March 2020 at 15:50.