Aditya ChaudhuriThe Premier League has partnered with Kick It Out to launch the South Asian Action Plan, which will be addressing the underrepresentation of British South Asian players within the English academy system.
The programme will be supporting the Premier League’s commitments towards anti-racism, developing player pathways and more diversification within the game.
The South Asian Action Plan will be initially focused on players from the U9 to U11 age groups, the stage when most kids join a club. This will help in getting a better understanding of the issues faced by the South Asian players right from the start of their careers.
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Neil Saunders, Director of Football at the Premier League, commented:
“The South Asian Action Plan is a long-term project which will enable us to look at and improve the diversity of everyone within the Academy system, both on and off the pitch.
“The partnership with Kick It Out will provide us with independent diversity and inclusion expertise and enable us to further enhance connections between the Premier League and South Asian communities.”
Sanjay Bhandari, Kick It Out Chair, added:
“The South Asian Action Plan is a crucial step forward to build on recent successes and develop sustainable pathways into the game for South Asian players.
“Representation of South Asians on the pitch in elite football is a statistical anomaly. Currently, it reflects neither the population nor the popularity of football amongst the British South Asian community. We love the game as fans and want to be seen more on the pitch. This is a generational opportunity to create change and inspire the next generation. We look forward to working with the Premier League and our other partners across the game to deliver it.”
In addition to working towards increasing South Asian representation, there will also be focus on other matters such as equality, diversion and inclusion education sessions for existing Talent ID and recruitment professionals.
