ANG Football Starts At Home Program ang flagship program ng Philippine Football Federation para sa grassroots development.
Itinatag ni coach Tom Byer, target ng programa ang mga bata na may edad 2 hanggang 6 — ang golden age ng skill acquisition.
Sa pamamagitan nito, matututunan ng mga bata ang basic ball manipulation skills habang pinalalakas ang bond sa kanilang mga magulang at ang kanilang learning abilities sa tahanan, na itinuturing na isang ligtas, protektado at masayang kapaligiran.
Ang Football Starts At Home ay gumugulong na, ayon sa 63-year-old youth football advocate kung saan binisita niya, kasama ang PFF, ang lahat ng 35 Regional Football Association upang simulan ang inisyatiba.
“Building the advocacy among [35] Regional Football Associations is key to connecting with the community’s stakeholders. Building the advocacy among the educational institutions, ministries. More interaction between parents and students,” sabi ni Byer, na naglaro sa Hitachi FC sa Japan domestic league at nakatrabaho ang top professional at national team coaches.
Sinabi ni Byer na ang pagkakaroon ng malakas na adbokasiya sa lahat ng federations stakeholders ay krusyal para sa ikatatagumpay ng programa.
Target ng Philippine Football Federation na makapagprodyus ng young talents na highly skilled ball masters. Sa pundasyong ito, ang mga batang talento ay magiging handa para sa team activities at maaaring hubugin ng mga coach tungo sa pagiging competitive players na sa huli ay maaaring maglaro para sa national pool.
“This is a flagship program that we believe will revolutionize Philippine football, not in the short term, not in the near future, but in the long term,” wika ni PFF President John Gutierrez sa paglulunsad ng FSAH sa UP Diliman noong nakaraang Hunyo.
“There has always been this belief, in my opinion, a misconception, that grassroots development should start between the ages of 6 to 12. This program will prove that learning football can start much, much earlier.”
“We are excited to have come across this program. This is an initiative that PFF believes will change the landscape of Philippine football, not [soon], but moving along [the] preparation of the nationals…in around six, eight, ten, or twelve years. But it’s very important to start things like this sooner than later because otherwise, we will just have to depend on getting, again, talent, that is developed elsewhere,” dagdag pa niya.
Si Byer ay bumalik kamakailan sa Pilipinas upang ipagpatuloy ang tour at adbokasiya kasama sina Gutierrez at Head of Grassroots Dave Javellana.
Para sa ikatlong activation tour, binisita nila ang Olongapo, Rizal, Laguna, Mindoro, Naga, Masbate at Leyte noong unang linggo ng Oktubre. Ngayon ay patungo sila sa Surigao, Tagum, Davao City, Sultan Kudsarat, M’Lang, Maguindanao at General Santos City.