Barefoot UK

We work in partnership with Ryman Premier League club Boreham Wood FC, Oaklands College, Hertswood School and Crest Schools of English. The programme is designed so that both British and Japanese players can receive top-level football coaching as well as an academic education. Whilst local players gain accreditations in A Levels, sports science and other subjects, Japanese recruits stay with a London host family and gain specialist English language coaching. All football coaching takes lace at Boreham Wood and players train and play with the PASE (Programme for Academic and Sporting Excellence) academy and, if good enough, the reserves and first team.

In conjunction with the Football Association, we provide Japanese football players and coaches the opportunity to gain qualifications in coaching courses offered by the FA. Students can take the FA International Coaching License, UEFA 'A' Coaching Award, as well as Levels 1, 2 and 3 Coaching Certificates. We provide a package for Japanese students that includes host family accommodation, intensive English language courses, coaching practice and the FA courses that they are taking.

We have been working for several years in conjunction with Arsenal FC to promote the Arsenal Soccer Schools in Japan. Each year we bring over young Japanese players to the school which is a series of week-long residential summer courses providing a fun and safe environment for children aged 9 - 15 to develop their football skills. In 2004 we hosted the first ever Arsenal Soccer School in Japan, taking over Arsenal coaches to host the school at J-League club Tokyo Verdy.

We have joined forces with Arsenal Ladies FC, Oaklands College and Nike to establish the first ever Ladies Academy to be directly funded by a men's professional football club. With training at Arsenal's state-of-the-art London Colney training ground, the academy provides the opportunity for promising young girls to receive top class football coaching and accredited qualifications at college. Barefoot co-ordinates players from Japan who stay with a local host family and study intensive English at Oaklands College. 2001 saw Japanese national team player Megumi Ogawa breaking into the Arsenal 1st XI, making her the first ever player from Japan to play in top-flight football in England.

Since 1996 we have been running soccer training camps in the UK for Japanese teams of all ages and abilities. Based at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, and other quality London venues, the camps provide Japanese teams with accommodation, top class training grounds, and matches against local professional and semi-pro teams. We also arrange UEFA qualified coaches, Premier League match tickets, and sightseeing / shopping trips according to each group's needs. All our camps have bilingual staff to ensure the highest possible care.

In conjunction with Arsenal Ladies FC, we also organise and run educational soccer camps in the UK for Japanese girls. Based in the beautiful surroundings of Queenswood School in Hertfordshire, girls receive top class coaching from Arsenal's UEFA 'A' qualified coaching staff. Camps include visits to watch Arsenal train, and matches against top English women's teams.

In association with Japan's largest promoter of amateur football Serie Ltd we run official football tournaments in England in conjunction with the London FA

Each year we host the Anglo-Japanese Cup, which is an invitation tournament for English and Japanese non league teams. Japanese teams travel specifically to play in the tournaments which provide a competitive but friendly environment in which to promote cultural exchange through football.

Barefoot Hokkaido FC is our sister club in Japan. Playing in the first division of the Hokkaido League, which it has won for the past two years, Barefoot is known as one of Hokkaido's strongest amateur teams and currently has its sights on the Japan Football League (Japan's semi-pro league). The club itself has players ranging from 5 yr olds right through to adults, as well as a ladies team. With its own purpose built indoor training centre it is used by professional club Sapporo Consodole for training in the winter.

Club manager Masamitsu Oshima was instrumental in setting up our first ever project back in 1994 when three 16 yr olds from Sapporo Dai-ichi high school came to England to play football and study English. We owe a great deal to "Ichi", "Maru" and "Yama" , as pioneers on our mission to promote cultural exchange between Japan and the UK through football.




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