Academy education

Academies shape the future of football. So it’s only natural you’ll find Kick It Out in academies – making sure the future has no place for discrimination.

Since the 2014/15 season, we’ve run our Equality Inspires programme in Premier League academies nationwide.

And we work with League Football Education to deliver similar sessions for clubs in the EFL.

Our workshops get players in every age group talking about racism and discrimination. We run sessions for staff, parents, guardians and host families too. Because everyone connected to academies can play a part in getting discrimination out of football forever.

What’s involved?

Our workshops cover a lot of ground. We’re here to help people learn more and feel confident calling out abuse. Sessions cover: 

• Racism – What is it, what impact does it have and how can we change it? 
• Homophobia – How can we stop people facing discrimination for their sexuality? 
• Social media – Advice on being mindful about what to post and how to respond to abuse. 
• Advice for parents and guardians – How to give the best support to young players.
• Advice for staff – From employment law to ways to help every player thrive.
• Specific issues – We can run tailored sessions on the issues that matter most to young players – from banter to faith. 

In 2021/22 we delivered Equality Inspires workshops to almost 700 participants, from under-9s to parents and guardians and everyone in between. 

We also delivered at 40 EFL clubs, reaching over 1700 participants at all age ranges. 

If we ignore discrimination, it won’t go anywhere. But by working with academies, we’ll Kick It Out.