GFF launches Youth Ensemble Programme to Transform National Youth Football Calendar

Mar 02, 2026 Sports

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Kaieteur Sports – The Guyana Football Federation (GFF) has officially announced the launch of its inaugural Youth Ensemble Programme, a landmark initiative designed to overhaul the seasonal calendar for club football with a structured and strategic focus on youth competitions.

Approved by the Federation’s Congress, the programme will introduce national competitions at the Under-13, Under-15 and Under-17 levels, commencing May 2, 2026. The initiative represents a central pillar of the GFF’s long-term development strategy aimed at providing young players with more structured and competitive matches per season, expanding the national scouting pool, strengthening early talent identification, and increasing participation levels across the country.

The Youth Ensemble will be played in two distinct phases.

Intra-Association Phase – Each Regional Association will organize competitions in a league format, with all eligible and properly registered clubs invited to enter teams within the respective age groups.

National Championship Playoffs – The top two teams from each association will advance to the National Phase, where they will compete for the honour of being crowned National Club Champion in their respective age division.

The competition calendar has been deliberately aligned with school holiday periods and the buildup to international youth tournaments. This strategic scheduling allows for early scouting, extended preparation periods, and streamlined national team selection processes.

In accordance with their Concacaf, CFU and GFF Club Licensing obligations, the ten Elite League clubs will be required to field teams in the designated youth age groups, reinforcing the Federation’s commitment to building a comprehensive player development pathway.

Child Safeguarding will remain a compulsory component of all Youth Ensemble activities, consistent with the Federation’s Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Rights of the Child Commission. The programme is also aligned with the global safeguarding framework established by FIFA through its FIFA Child Safeguarding Strategy, which outlines clear standards for prevention, reporting, risk management and education across all Member Associations.

At the national level, implementation will be guided by the Guyana Football Federation Child Safeguarding Policy, ensuring that every Regional Association and club adheres to established protocols designed to protect young players from harm, abuse, discrimination and neglect.

Together, these frameworks reinforce the GFF’s unwavering commitment to creating safe, inclusive and development-focused football environments for every child.

The success of the Youth Ensemble Programme depends heavily on the proactive engagement of Regional Associations and their registered clubs. The Federation is urging all stakeholders to ensure timely player registrations, administrative compliance, and effective coordination so that no young player is denied participation due to avoidable administrative delays or procedural oversights.

The GFF will conduct consultations with each Regional Association to support operational planning and to ensure alignment from the national level through to the more than 200 affiliated clubs across Guyana.

GFF President Wayne Forde described the Youth Ensemble Programme as a defining step in modernizing Guyana’s youth football ecosystem – “This initiative will streamline planning from the GFF, through our Regional Associations, and across more than 200 clubs throughout Guyana. It represents the blueprint for youth competition at the club level and a major shift toward a more structured and predictable football calendar.

I am confident that this programme will strengthen our development pathway and significantly expand opportunities for talent identification nationwide. I urge every Regional Association and every club to go above and beyond to ensure that no child who wants to play football is denied that opportunity because of late registration or avoidable administrative shortcomings. Our collective responsibility is to ensure that every young player has a fair and meaningful chance to participate and grow in the game.”

With its structured format, mandatory participation standards, integrated safeguarding framework, and alignment with international development principles, the Youth Ensemble Programme marks a new chapter for youth football in Guyana—one built on access, organization, competitiveness and opportunity. (GFF Press Release)

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• GFF, Guyana Football Federation, Youth Ensemble Programme, youth football

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