Blind Football Session - Reading FC

Blind Football arrives in Reading

New partnership to deliver regular blind football sessions for children and adults

Berks & Bucks FA have formed partnership with Reading FC and Berkshire Vision to deliver regular blind football sessions for children and adults.

The sessions, which are funded by The FA’s Project B1 programme and Wembley National Stadium Trust, take place bi-weekly on Friday evenings at the Madejski Stadium.

The sessions have proved to be very popular with 25 participants taking advantage of these new playing opportunity. It even caught the eye of Reading FC first team manager, Veljko Paunovic, who recently visited training to lend his support.

Reading FC, First Team Manager, Veljko Paunovic, attends a Blind Football Session in Reading.


The introduction of these sessions is extremely important to Berks & Bucks FA's commitment to making the game accessible for all. Whilst disability football is active across our region, Blind Football is difficult to integrate into any provision where sighted players participate. For this reason it has always had to remain in its own pathway separate from PAN-Disability Football.

By introducing the new Project B1 format where players can play, small sided, non-contact blind football as a first step, we are able to help players young and old to start their journey in Blind Football. 

The sessions are safe, age appropriate and have a pathway for players to progress up to the Paralympic version of the game.

Of the new provision. Reading FC’s Disability Programme Manager, Dan Rook, said: “It just shows how inclusive football can be and the power of football to bring communities together”.

Reading FC are not stopping here however, and Dan hopes that these sessions will one day lead to a Reading FC Blind Team.

Held on Friday evenings every other week, the sessions take place inside the Community Dome, (located behind the Madejski Stadium) in Reading and are open to both adults and children who are registered blind. To attend an upcoming session, please contact Dan Rook at Reading FC on 01189072160 or via drook@readingfc.co.uk

For more information about Disability Football in Berks & Bucks FA, please contact Football Development Officer, Jonathan Coles, via Development@Berks-BucksFA.com or, alternatively, visit the Disability Football section of our website.

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