"I literally played seven minutes and then got scouted for England": Player experiences of talent identification and development in women's blind football.

Abstract

The international development of women's blind football is in its infancy, yet blind football has featured at the Paralympic Games as an event only for men since 2004. The last few years have seen nations establish women's representative sides, the inaugural Women's Blind Football World Championships and the International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) lobby for the addition of women's blind football to the Paralympic Games programme. This paper adopts an intra-categorical approach to intersectionality to analyse the performance trajectories of female players in England. Through six semi-structured online interviews and one in-person focus group, data were generated with seven players, all of whom have been involved in England development squads over the last 3 years. Collaborative abductive thematic analysis generated the following key themes: (1) Entry points - a game of chance; (2) Rapid development trajectories - too much, too soon?; and (3) A whole new ball game? Whilst players revelled in the opportunity to represent their nation, they encountered numerous challenges along the way. These findings have significant implications for key stakeholders striving to grow the game in an equitable manner while supporting the needs of diverse players.