With talk of a European Super League still rumbling on behind closed doors, and FIFA looking to flog the World Cup to the highest bidder, proper grass-roots footie is perhaps more important than ever.
And yet, despite the women’s game growing across nearly all formats, with tens of thousands of footie-mad ladies taking up the sport in the last ten years, the blokes of Britain seem to be slowly falling out of love with the 11-aside game.
A study by Sport England paints a particularly grim picture. It found that a shocking 163,000 fewer men playing football at the start of last season than they were a decade ago, the equivalent of 14 thousand football teams. According to the FA, a big part of this decline comes from young British blokes moving away from regular, organised grass-roots teams in favour of more relaxed versions of the game like 5-aside as well as other sports entirely.
James Kendall, the FA Director of Football Development explained: “We’re seeing less adult male 11-a-side affiliated football being played, with our hypothesis that many continue to play but enjoy the flexibility of smaller casual formats.”
Cost is also an issue, with rising prices pushing potentially keen, young amateur players in the directions of other sports. On top of match fees, fines and other costs, footballers looking to play on the iconic Hackney Marshes, previously graced by the likes of John Terry and Ian Wright, now have to splash out £5.70 an hour to use previously free parking facilities, setting drivers back an estimated £510 a season.
For manager Will Hamilton, 39, who has played on the Marshes with AFC Islington for over a decade and managed the side for 3 seasons, declining numbers may be terminal, with his side considering dropping out of the league for good if things don’t get better in the coming months.
When asked why things were harder than ever, self-described chairman, manager, medic and captain Will told a familiar story, highlighting an aging side and rising prices. One of the biggest reasons he cited though was the rise in popularity of different, more casual formats.
Will, who when he’s not running down the touchline on Hackney marshes works in a ‘classic office job’. explained: “A lot of people don’t like playing 11-a-side. You can get your football fix in half an hour. We’ve definitely lost a lot of people to the more casual games.”
“I don’t think anybody comes out and says they just can’t be bothered, or that they’d rather lie in bed or go on holiday. But people have got a lot more options now. Back in the day, what else would you do on a weekend? Go to the pub. Football was more appealing.”
While also enjoying these more relaxed, small-sides games, Will believes that players are missing out on something by turning their back on Sunday league.
He explained: “The difference with a league is that you’re part of a team over an entire season. You build stories, rivalries and memories that you just don’t get from turning up for a casual kickabout.
“It’s all about those moments on the pitch. Everything else is just getting to the point where you’re all there together playing a game. In modern life there aren’t many places where you get that really intense teamwork and camaraderie.”
For Will, like many, this sense of camaraderie is more than just a bit of fun, with the connections formed while playing often transformative for people’s mental health.
He explained: “I think men struggle with friendships. Blokes tend to need something to hang them on. They need an excuse to meet up. Football gives you that excuse.”
21-year-old Finn Hildesley, who plays for Islington’s rivals AFC Brasenose, bucked the apparent trend in moving from more relaxed formats like 5 and 7-aside at the start of last season.
He told the Star that he initially finding the physicality of Sunday League difficult, especially considering many of his opponents were much bigger and older. However, after just a few months, he says he had fallen in love with the uniqueness of 11-aside.
Finn, who was recruited while pouring pints at his local pub, said: “Sometimes the guys we play are really aggressive, making the games seem personal. When this isn’t the case, it allows younger players to enjoy the games more and focus on winning and getting better at the game we all love.”
While winning games can ‘make the next seven days sweeter’, Finn says it’s the relationships and not the results that keep bringing him back: “It’s the football culture: playing with my friends and going to the pub for a pint afterwards.