Biggest Ever Football Session aims to break record of 475,000 girls playing | OneFootball

The FA, in collaboration with Barclays, have confirmed details of the countrywide 2025 Biggest Ever Football Session on Friday 7 March.

The flagship day in the calendar is central to The FA’s equal access in school ambition, and the 2025 edition will see a continuation of the hugely successful sessions that have taken place for the past four years and contributed to record-breaking increases in women’s and girls’ participation. Taking place the day before International Women’s Day, it will build on last year’s success which saw a record-breaking 475,000 girls from 5,000 schools across the country taking part.

The week after The FA launched its new women and girls’ campaign, ‘Made For This Game’, this year’s Biggest Ever Football Session will still encourage schools up and down the country to get as many young girls playing football on the same day. In addition, for the first time, this year will also include interactive classroom-based sessions hosted at two showpiece locations, showcasing the various opportunities that are available within the sport, away from the pitch.

The two spotlight events will take place in a London and Manchester school and will be led by England legends Rachel Yankey and Steph Houghton. Award-winning referee Surekha Griffiths, trailblazing journalists Miriam Walker-Khan and Emma Sanders, and Barclays ambassador Ian Wright will all play central roles on the day.

Each will give an insight into their unique journey into football and lead an interactive activity which will give students an insight into their role within the game From personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE) to literacy, the sessions will be crafted around school-based lessons to showcase the breadth of avenues into football and show all girls that they belong in the game.

The London spotlight event will take place in a secondary school, with KS3 and KS4 pupils the focus. One of The FA’s strategic core focuses is to increase curriculum and extra-curricular provision at Key Stage 3 (KS3), aided by the Barclays Game On programme which supports schools in modernising their curriculum and sharing the ambition to create a new generation of girls confident enough to lead football activities for their peers.

All participating schools across the country will again be provided with innovative physical football session ideas and resources supplied by England Football Learning to help them facilitate bespoke sessions throughout the school day to encourage more girls to participate in football in schools.

The BEFS is central to The FA’s objective within the Reaching Higher strategy to achieve a target of 90% of schools providing girls equal opportunity to play football in curricular and extra-curricular sessions by 2028. Incorporating off-pitch elements for young girls mirrors the ambition of the strategy and the newly launched ‘Made for This Game’ campaign, which champions girls’ belonging in any element of the sport.

Schools across the country are encouraged to sign-off up, with more information available here.

The FA’s Head of Development, Louise Gear, said: “Last year we saw a record number of girls playing football at our Biggest Ever Football Sessions up and down the country; an incredible achievement that truly showcases the appetite there is for young girls wanting to play the game. But we know that there are girls out there who don’t necessarily play but want to be involved. From coaching to refereeing to journalism, this year’s Biggest Ever Football Session is about showing all girls that they belong in football in every capacity.”

Tom Corbett, Group Head of Sponsorship, Barclays said: “Partnering with the FA to deliver this event is paramount to our commitment through the Barclays Girls Football School Partnerships to give girls equal access to play and to help them gain vital new skills and confidence. The Biggest Ever Football Session has consistently made a positive impact for girls on the pitch, and this year’s off-pitch sessions will show just how many opportunities there are in football as a whole, proving that girls are Made For This Game.”

West Ham Women score stoppage-time leveller against Man City