Grassroots Football Awards 2023
Nominations for the 2023 England Football and McDonalds Grassroots Football Awards are now open! We’re encouraging people across the country to nominate their grassroots heroes who make a difference!
The England Football and McDonald’s Grassroots Football Awards are to recognise and celebrate the people who put their heart and soul into the grassroots game across England, and to say a huge thank you to the incredible volunteers who inspire us all.
Nominations are open now, so please take a short time to submit one and let us know why your nominee deserves to be among our the winners.
The Ten 2023 Award Categories are:
Coach of the Year (Youth Teams)
• A coach that gives their time up and has invested their expertise to help others improve and enjoy football.
• Qualified to minimum Level 1 with a first aid qualification, safeguarding children and FA DBS qualification.
• A coach that goes above and beyond what other volunteer coaches do, in your experience. A coach that inspires young players and creates the best environment for young people to grow and learn the game.
Coach of the Year (Adult Teams)
• A coach that gives their time up and has invested their expertise to help others improve and enjoy football.
Grounds Team of the Year
• An award that recognises outstanding progress from your workforce with grass pitches, in your club or site setting. Being innovative and embracing new and progressive practice, technology and importantly a commitment to making grass pitches on your site the best they can be, to benefit the football community.
• Sites/clubs who have engaged in the FA Pitch Improvement Programme
• Clear evidence and commitment of investment in training, education and continuous personal development of your grounds team would be ideal.
Rising Star of the Year
• This could be a young coach, player, volunteer or match official that displays talent in an area of football (under the age of 18).
Club of the Year
• For an active, successful and well-run football club which attracts and retains participants as well as volunteers.
• A club that represents its local community and promotes a “Football For All” ethos.
• Have the club started / promoted any new teams or initiatives over the last 12 months?
League of the Year
• We are looking for an inclusive league that promotes the “Football For All” ethos, which is evident in its processes as a grassroots football league.
• A league that goes above and beyond the practice of other leagues in the County
• What new initiatives have the league begun in the last 12 months and what impact has this had on football?
Volunteer of the Year
• Someone who has given their time and talent to enable others to take part in football. Predominantly in a none-coaching capacity.
• What role(s) has the volunteer done in the last 12 months?
• Why do they deserve this award above all other volunteers in the County?
Spirit of Grassroots Football Awards
• We’re looking for those special individuals, club, league or group who see grassroots football as a place to positively impact the well-being of all.
• The award is to recognise how they’ve developed support to make sure their community stay happy, healthy and connected.
• This is more than just playing, but about the power of football to support mental health, positivity and building a football family. It’s for those who think about the whole player and volunteers as developing people rather than just producing players or winning matches. Supporting each other in a safe, fun and fair environment on and off the pitch. This could be in response to COVID 19, or as a continuation of what they already do.
Match Official
• Minimum of a Level 7 Referee
• Clearly demonstrated an exceptional level of performance and dedication to refereeing.
Project of the Year
• A new innovative football-based project, this could be engaging with hard-to-reach groups or groups of people who find exercise and football in particular hard to access; such as BAME groups, 40+ females, groups of people managing their mental health or people with a physical impairment. This is not an exhaustive list!
If you would like to nominate an individual, club or league for any of the ten awards above please follow this link to complete the nomination form. Each County FA will select a winner for each of the categories from your nominations. These form a shortlist for our national winners awarded by a National Judging Panel.
