School-club partnership and talent development structures in Bindura youth football

Abstract

This study explored how school–club partnerships could strengthen talent development structures in Bindura youth football. A qualitative case-study design was adopted to obtain an in-depth understanding of the experiences and perspectives of stakeholders involved in youth football development. The study population comprised school football coaches, club coaches, sports directors and physical education teachers, club administrators, and youth football players aged between 13 and 18 years. Purposive sampling was used to select participants with relevant experience and involvement in youth football development. A total of 22 participants took part in the study, with the final sample guided by data saturation. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and document analysis. The data were analyzed thematically using the six-phase approach of Braun and Clarke, with NVivo used to support coding, organization and comparison of the data. The findings revealed that talent identification and player development were largely informal and poorly coordinated. Limited funding, inadequate facilities and equipment, transport difficulties, limited competition opportunities and a shortage of qualified coaches constrained talent development. Although schools and clubs provided some opportunities for training, competition and skill development, their initiatives operated largely independently. Participants identified written partnership agreements, regular communication, joint scouting and training, shared resources, player monitoring and clear referral pathways as important mechanisms for strengthening collaboration. The study concludes that structured school–club partnerships could improve talent identification, coordination and player progression. It recommends joint planning, resource sharing and systematic mechanisms for tracking talented players from school football into club and higher-level development programmes.