Football is played at all levels, from beginners all the way to FIFA World Cups for men and women.
For players looking to advance, and for their families, sometimes the many different program names and competition names can seem like an impenetrable mystery – it is hard to know where you can get to and how.
For that reason, we have mapped out the different programs and levels for the male and female talented player development pathways below so that people have some idea where they can go.
We’ve highlighted the areas where we run programs, and in areas where we don’t run programs but a nearby FNSW club does, we will list them so you know where you can look.
| Male Competition Structures 2020 | ||||||||
| Curriculum Phase | Format | Age | ESFA Divisions | National Premier Leagues | ||||
| National Premier League Men 4 | National Premier League Men 3 | National Premier League Men 2 | National Premier League Men 1 | |||||
| Performance | 11v11 | 45+ | O45M | NPLM4 First Grade | NPLM3 First Grade | NPLM2 First Grade | NPLM1 First Grade | |
| 35+ | O35M | |||||||
| Open | AAM | |||||||
| 23 | ||||||||
| 22 | ||||||||
| 21 | U21 | |||||||
| 20 | NPLN4 U20 | NPLN3 U20 | NPLM2 U20 | NPLM1 U20 | ||||
| 19 | ||||||||
| 18 | U18 | NPLM4 U18 | NPLM3 U18 | NPLM2 U18 | NPLM1 U18 | |||
| Game Training | 17 | |||||||
| 16 | U16 | NPLY 2 U16 | NPYL 1 U16 | |||||
| 15 | U15 | NPLY 2 U15 | NPYL 1 U15 | |||||
| 14 | U14 | NPLY 2 U14 | NPYL 1 U14 | |||||
| Skill Training | 13 | U13 | NPLY 2 U13 | NPYL 1 U13 | ||||
| 12 | U12 | ESFA SAP U12 | ||||||
| 9v9 | 11 | U11 | ESFA SAP U11 | |||||
| 10 | U10 | ESFA SAP U10 | ||||||
| 7v7 | 9 | U9 | ESFA SAP U9 | |||||
| Discovery | 8 | U8 | ||||||
| 4v4 | 7 | U7 | ||||||
| 6 | U6 | |||||||
| * Played in a 9v9 MiniRoos format | ||||||||
| Female Competition Structures 2020 | |||||||
| Curriculum Phase | Format | Age | ESFA Divisions | Girls Conference League | National Premier Leagues | ||
| National Premier League Women 2 | National Premier League
Women 1 |
||||||
| Performance | 11v11 | 30+ | AAW | NPLW2 Firsts and Reserves | NPLW1 Firsts and Reserves | ||
| Open | |||||||
| 23 | |||||||
| 22 | |||||||
| 21 | |||||||
| 20 | |||||||
| 19 | |||||||
| 18 | G18 | ||||||
| Game Training | 17 | GCL
U17 |
NPLW2 U17 | NPLW1 U17 | |||
| 16 | G16 | ||||||
| 15 | GCL
U15 |
NPLW2 U15 | NPLW1 U15 | ||||
| 14 | G14 | GCL
U14 |
NPLW2
U14 |
NPLW1
U14 |
|||
| Skill Training | 13 | GSAP U13* | |||||
| 12 | G12 | GSAP U12** | SAP U12** | ||||
| 9v9 | 11 | G11 | GSAP U11 | SAP U11 | |||
| 10 | G10 | GSAP U10 | SAP U10 | ||||
| 7v7 | 9 | G9 | SAP U9 | ||||
| Discovery | 8 | G8 | |||||
| 4v4 | 7 | U7 | |||||
| 6 | U6 | ||||||
| * Played in a 10v10 format
** Played in a 9v9 format |
|||||||
For male players, ESFA runs SAP and runs Boys Youth League (u13-u16) in conjunction with UNSW FC – below are listed the other clubs based in the Eastern Suburbs and the competitions they are in:
- Hakoah Sydney City East: National Premier League Men’s 2, National Premier League Youth (Tier 1)
- Sydney University: National Premier League Men’s 3, National Premier League Youth (Tier 2)
- Dunbar Rovers NPL: National Premier League Men’s 3, National Premier League Youth (Tier 2)
- UNSW FC: National Premier Leagues Men’s 4, National Premier League Youth (Tier 2)*in conjunction with ESFA
For female players, ESFA runs SAP and Girls’ SAP. Below are listed the other clubs based in the Eastern Suburbs and the competitions they are in:
- Sydney University: National Premier League Women’s 1
- UNSW FC: National Premier League Women’s 2
- Dunbar Rovers NPL: Girls’ Conference League
We hope this takes away a little bit of the mystery and enables players and their families to have a better idea of where they are placed within the football development pathway.