THROUGH FIFA, the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) is investing in the development of their male Under-15 and Under-16 players.

Technical Director Bryan Joseph on Friday announced that the Federation had been approved to be a part of the FIFA Talent Development Scheme, a High-Performance programme aimed at fostering the growth and development of top talents in a country.

“It is to give talents in Guyana every chance at success”, the Technical Director noted at the press conference alongside Racing Madrid Football Club President Steve Nijjar and former Real Madrid Football Club mid-fielder now UEFA Pro Licence coach, Rubén de la Red.

In October 2023, GFF and Racing Madrid FC signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

Joseph explained that the GFF is beginning to reap the rewards as the Spanish club facilitated hiring the UEFA Pro Licence coach who meets the FIFA requirements for the job.

The Spanish coach will focus on the technical work of players selected in the programme that will have a general pool of 40 but a focus group of 24 players.

Currently, the programme has commenced with players mainly from Georgetown, East Coast and West Demerara, who train at least three times per week, while on weekends, they bring players from Linden, Bartica and Berbice.

“We don’t have expertise in high-performance coach, and FIFA has afforded us that opportunity….from 2025, there will be the U-17 World Cup, and it means every year Guyana will have a chance to qualify for the U-17 World Cup, and this programme is the next step to our Academy Training Centre”, the Technical Director expressed.

While the Academy is focused on top players within Associations, this programme is solely for the top players in the country.

The GFF will also change their youth football structure to have players contest over 40 matches per year in keeping with their European counterparts.

Joseph said a FIFA study revealed that, on average, Caribbean youth footballers play just 10-12 matches per year.

However, the main issue is finding a way to incorporate players from all associations into the programme, and the Technical Director noted that a partnership with the Ministry of Education would be critical in achieving such an endeavour.

The Technical Director explained that ideally they need four to five sessions, including a match, per week with players, as “the biggest challenge is not the distance but the schooling.”

He said they would have to explore options for creating a hybrid learning system where players can train and get schooling while encamped at the GFF Technical Centre at Providence, East Bank Demerara.

FIFA is expected to provide an initial annual subvention of US$50,000 for the project, which will increase as the programme evolves, and they will fund the stay of Rubén in Guyana.