The newest approach in grassroots football from the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) will  be seen in the ongoing first Mauricio Domogan Football Cup at Melvin Jones and Athletic Bowl held every weekend this July.This  will be the newest feature in  the Cup organized and sponsored by Goshen Land,BUFC and the city of Baguio.The city will be the first to implement this approach since it was introduced to  Philippine football coaches by a Japanese coach from  FIFA in a seminar at Bacolod last month.

Coach Aris Bocalan,the playing coach of the Goshenland-BUFC Men’s Football team who also represented the city in the seminar explained that the new football program will be applied first to 7 and under kids on July 30. To meet this need, the organizers will open a sub-category in the Domogan Football Cup for 7 and under kids,called Midgets age group. Parents who have kids in this age group and are interested to be trained in  football under this new approach can bring their kids to Melvin Jones on   July 30, 8 o’clock in the morning for registration.

Bocalan explained that this new FIFA approach in grassroots football will encourage more kids to get trained in football because it is not tournament oriented but development oriented. Under the new approach, systems will be implemented where kids will register and will be assigned to teams. Afterwards, they will be ushered to different stations in  the training system where they will be coached and mentored on every aspect of their game and skills. Afterwards, they will be brought to a tournament station where they will apply the coaching they received from the different training systems.

Bocalan explained that the new FIFA approach was reached after a football study was conducted showing young kids get discouraged immediately when they get suddenly plunged into competition without the needed support system .In a rare show of support to local grassroots football, FIFA will conduct a coaches’ training at BSU on July 11. ***Goshen Land release