Kick the corporate out of children’s football – National Children's Football Alliance

Kick The Corporate Out of Children’s Football was the the feedback from parents, facilitators and volunteers, at this year’s National Children’s Football Week’s Free V Free. An increasing realisation of the brandification of the children’s game is fueling claims that football is the bully of sport on the school play ground. ‘If you are no good at football you are no good at sport.’, said, Jason Swift, parent, Liverpool.

Pester power is the ability of children to pressurize their parents into buying them products, especially items advertised in the media. Football brands care little for the development of our children. It is not in the interests of professional football clubs to safe guard our children’s parents from branding their little ones as young as two weeks old. From the moment children are born they are branded and the football fraternity claim another unsuspecting life-long product wearing walking advertisement.

In the recent decade we experienced a tremendous shift in social media as well as in its usage. One of the primary objectives of social media is to increase brand awareness through building stronger relationships between companies and customers. Marketing is now more intense than ever.

What’s the problem?

Manufacturing children for a football system brings a myriad of issues that don’t seem to figure in the grand scheme of things. If the father was brought up on Derby County then his son will have no choice or if mum is a life-long Chelsea fan then her daughter will follow suit. Keep it in the family! It pays to brand early – very early!

Over the years The NCFA receive concerns from parents about their children being under pressure to buy the latest football kit, boots, etc. The fall-out at home and at school can be stressful for all concerned. Are you a parent with a view on this matter? If so – let us know about it and answer the following questions by sharing your opinions by emailing them to: info@thecfa.co.uk

As your child ever been bullied at football. If so – where? On the play ground, at a football club or other place? What was the cause of bullying?
Have you been pestered by your child to buy any football regalia / paraphernalia? If yes, what was it?
What should be done to protect children from branding?

In the recent decade we experienced a tremendous shift in social media as well as in its usage. One of the primary objectives of social media is to increase brand awareness through building stronger relationships between companies and customers. Marketing is now more intense than ever.

As your child ever been bullied at football. If so – where? On the play ground, at a football club or other place? What was the cause of bullying?

Have you been pestered by your child to buy any football regalia / paraphernalia? If yes, what was it?

What should be done to protect children from branding?