No keepers in U-7s football will be 'catastrophic'

Goalkeeper coach Nick Eyre said some children have a "passion" for keeping the ball out of the goal [Chelmsford City Football Club] A goalkeeper coach thought new rules that remove goalkeepers from under-7s football would be "catastrophic". From the beginning of the 2026-27 season, children in this age group will play three-a-side games instead of five-a-side, on smaller pitches and without goalkeepers. The Football Association (FA) said it made the changes to give players more touches on the ball.

Nick Eyre, head of goalkeeping at Chelmsford City Football Club, said goalkeepers losing a year of development could be problematic for the next generation, and they may opt to pick up other sports instead. He believed naturally defensive young players will also be let down, and that historic national sides, like Italy, were moulded by "the art of defending". "There are children that naturally are more predisposed and want to defend," he said.

"I think [that] has gone a little bit from football. The love and the passion for keeping it out of the goal. "You cannot play football without goalkeepers unless we're going to allow it to become like basketball, where it's end-to-end and high-scoring games.

" He added: "Yes, I'm biased. Yes, goalkeepers [is] my whole life, but I do believe that the idea of no goalkeepers is probably catastrophic for English goalkeeping. " New rules From September, under-7s will play under these rules: Three-a-side games (10m x 15m minimum pitch size) No referees - Pitch facilitators guide rather than enforce rules Six to ten minutes per game, totalling 30 to 40 minutes of game time per player Teams rotate between pitches like a carousel No substitutes No official results or league tables Goalkeepers will be introduced at the under-8 stage.