Football academy trials in England: what the rules say

Who can have an academy trial

The Premier League’s (opens in a new tab) and the EFL’s (opens in a new tab) rules define a trialist as a player from Under 9 to Under 21, and their conditions for trials name age groups up to Under 16, which is what this page covers. For an older player, ask the club which rules apply. A younger child may be invited to a club’s pre-academy instead, which is not a trial: our guide to pre-academy and development centres explains it.

The rules also limit how far from the academy a child can live to be offered a trial:

• Under 9 to Under 11: within one hour’s travelling time of the club’s academy.
• Under 12 and Under 13: within one and a half hours. The exception is a child who lives more than one and a half hours from the nearest academy: the nearest club with an academy of the right category can offer a trial if it plans to register the child under that exception.
• Under 14 to Under 16: the trial rules set no travel limit.

The league decides any question about travel time. A trial is not a promise of registration, and registration has its own travel limits, which our guide to how football academies work sets out. If a club a long way from home offers a trial, ask how it would register your child if the trial went well.

Before the trial starts

The rules say that before a trial starts:

• your child’s school, and any grassroots club they belong to, must be given at least seven days’ written notice;
• your child’s details must be sent to the league, with proof of home address and date of birth and a photograph;
• the league must confirm to the club that the conditions for the trial have been met.

When the trial starts, the league may give you and your child a copy of the rules. If you are not sure the trial has been confirmed, ask the club.

How long a trial lasts

Up to eight consecutive weeks in any one season, without your child being registered.

From Under 9 to Under 16, the club can apply to the league for up to four more weeks. It must apply at least a week before the trial is due to end, and the application needs your consent and your child’s. The league grants it only if it is satisfied with the club’s arrangements for your child’s welfare and education.

If your child is injured, or the trial is interrupted for another reason, an application can be made to the league to extend it, again at least a week before it is due to end.

A trial can end before the scheduled date; if it does, the league must be told. During the first seven weeks of the initial eight-week trial, your child cannot be registered with another club’s academy. The rules expressly say an extended trial can be ended at any time.

During the trial

Within each league’s academy system, the rules say a trial may not be offered to a child who is already on trial at another academy, and that league will not confirm overlapping dates. The two rulebooks do not expressly say whether a Premier League trial and an EFL trial may overlap, so ask both clubs before agreeing dates.

The club must keep a record of your child’s development during the trial, which the rules call a Development Journey, and make it available to your child and to you. Ask the club how and when it will tell you how the trial is going.

If your child is already at an academy

A club cannot offer a trial to a child registered with another club’s academy unless that club agrees in writing, or the child is free under the rules to look for a place elsewhere, for example after being told the academy will not keep them. A registered academy player can play in a trial match for another Premier League or EFL club only with the prior written permission of the club that holds the registration.

An Under 16 player who has been told they will not be offered a scholarship can have trials at one or more other clubs, up to eight weeks in total. Our guide to being released from an academy covers this, and the assessment trials the EFL describes for players in that position.

Money

The trial rules do not mention a fee. The rules do say a club must not offer a child, or anyone connected with them, any benefit or payment, in cash or in kind, to persuade them to register, and that an academy player must not accept one. The rules do allow a club to repay a trialist’s and parents’ actual expenses, in line with the league’s guidance. Lincoln City and Chelsea, whose published guidance our football trials guide quotes, say they never ask for money for a trial. If anyone asks you to pay for what they call an academy trial, check with the club directly, using contact details you find yourself. The PFA Youth Advisory Service (opens in a new tab) can also advise.

What happens next

The EFL’s 2026/27 handbook (opens in a new tab) describes a trial as a chance for the player to experience the academy and for the club to see them before it decides whether to offer a registration. Whether the club offers a place is its own decision. If it applies to register your child, the trial ends and the registration process starts. Our guide to how football academies work explains what registration means, including the seven days you have to change your mind after signing.

If the trial does not lead to a place, our football trials guide covers what to do next, and you can search for clubs near you by age group and match day.

The PFA Youth Advisory Service (opens in a new tab) can advise trialists and their families.

If you have a concern

For a safeguarding concern during a trial, tell the club’s safeguarding staff without delay, and ask the club who they are. The Premier League’s rules require each of its clubs to have a Head of Safeguarding and an Academy safeguarding officer, and the EFL’s handbook says your child’s club has a Senior Safeguarding Manager and a Designated Safeguarding Officer.

You do not have to report through the club first. If your concern is about someone at the club, or you do not feel able to use the club route, you can go directly to the Premier League’s safeguarding team, or the EFL’s safeguarding team for an EFL club. The FA’s reporting page (opens in a new tab) also lists County FA Designated Safeguarding Officers and The FA’s own safeguarding team as routes. For a Welsh club in the English leagues, the Football Association of Wales safeguarding guidance (opens in a new tab) says concerns can be raised with the club safeguarding officer or the FAW Safeguarding Team. Adults can contact the NSPCC helpline, and Childline is there for children and young people up to their 19th birthday. The Premier League’s handbooks for the Foundation Phase (opens in a new tab) and the Youth Development Phase (opens in a new tab), and the EFL’s handbook (opens in a new tab), give contact details.

If you think a child is suffering, or likely to suffer, significant harm, contact your local authority’s children’s social care (children’s social services in Wales). If a child is in immediate danger, call 999.

If you are worried that a trial offer is not genuine, our guides to football trials and how football scouts find young players explain how to check it.