Global grassroots football platform FTBLRLIFE is targeting Ghana as part of its expansion into the African football market, with the company looking to connect the country’s young players and academies to a wider global football community.
The platform, which currently has a presence in more than 130 countries, wants to create a digital ecosystem where players, coaches, academies and football businesses can connect, share their stories and discover opportunities.
Its planned entry into Ghana comes against the backdrop of a football landscape rich in young talent but where many players, particularly those outside established academies and professional structures, struggle to gain visibility.
From community pitches and school teams to privately run academies, Ghana has a large grassroots football network that continues to serve as the starting point for many of the country’s professional players.
FTBLRLIFE believes technology can help bridge some of the gaps between these players and the wider football industry.
The platform allows players to build profiles showcasing their football journeys, connect with coaches and academies, follow football-related stories and gain visibility for opportunities.
Academies can also use the platform to manage their teams, organise rosters and events, share updates and showcase their players to a global audience.
For Ghana, the company believes this could provide an additional avenue for young players to be seen beyond their immediate communities.
The platform’s expansion is built around what it describes as three key areas: organising the fragmented grassroots football community, increasing visibility for talent and providing support to the grassroots game.
FTBLRLIFE currently has more than 1,000 partner academies globally and says its wider programmes have impacted more than 27,000 children.
It also operates the FTBLRLIFE Foundation, which supports under-resourced football communities through its Foundation Ball programme.
The initiative provides footballs to academies in need, with QR technology on the balls creating a link between the beneficiaries, donors and the wider FTBLRLIFE community.
For a country such as Ghana, where access to basic football equipment remains a challenge for some grassroots clubs and community teams, the foundation’s work could form part of the organisation’s activities as it establishes itself in the market.
FTBLRLIFE founder David Clarke says the global football industry continues to overlook a significant part of the game.
“Valerie Nekesa was found playing barefoot in a village in Kenya. She just scored at a World Cup and signed with CD Tenerife. That is one story. There are millions more waiting,” he said.
The company estimates that more than 500 million players make up the global grassroots football market.
It believes many of those players remain invisible because grassroots football is often spread across disconnected academies, social media pages, messaging groups and local networks.
In Ghana, FTBLRLIFE hopes to bring some of those players and organisations onto one platform while creating links between local grassroots football and the international football community.
The move comes as Ghana continues to rely heavily on its grassroots system as a pathway for developing players for the domestic game and the Black Stars.
Several Ghanaian players who have gone on to successful careers in Europe and elsewhere began their journeys on local pitches and through youth academies.
FTBLRLIFE’s Ghana strategy will therefore be closely watched by academies and young players seeking alternative routes to exposure and opportunities outside the traditional scouting system.
The platform says its ultimate goal is to give grassroots football a home and ensure that talent is not limited by geography or access to established football networks.
With Ghana now firmly in its sights, FTBLRLIFE is hoping to make the country’s grassroots football community part of that global network.
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