Albion girls make it to national schools final
A primary school team representing the Albion has qualified for the national finals of a schools’ football tournament.
A team of girls from Balfour Primary School in Brighton successfully qualified through the local and regional stages of the Premier League Primary Stars Under-11 National Girls Football Tournament.
Thanks to their efforts, the team has earned the chance to play in the national finals at Molineux, the home of Wolverhampton Wanderers.
After qualifying through the local finals in Lancing last October, the team took part in regional finals at Southampton FC’s Staplewood Training Ground in March.
Balfour’s team represented Albion at the regional finals and took on schools representing Torquay, Reading, Portsmouth, AFC Bournemouth, and Southampton.
After a stellar tournament, the Balfour girls won the final 2-1 and qualified for the national finals later this year.
Tom Mahoney, School Development Officer at the BHAFC Foundation, said: “We’re really proud of how well Balfour have played in this tournament.
“We’ve been lucky enough to have some really strong teams representing the Albion over the past few years, and this year is no exception.
“It’s been a fantastic journey already for the Balfour girls, and I’m sure they’ll have an unforgettable day at Molineux at the national final.
“The Primary Stars tournaments are about more than just winning though – we’ve been able to get dozens of Sussex schools involved, getting active, and having fun playing football.”
Last year more than 14,500 girls across England and Wales took part in the competition, with several schools representing the Albion at Brentford FC’s Gtech Community Stadium in the 2024 national finals.
The tournament is one of the competition elements of the Premier League Primary Stars programme. Launched in 2017 and available to every primary school in England and Wales, Premier League Primary Stars uses the appeal of football to help children to be active and develop essential life skills.
Premier League Charitable Fund Chief Executive, Ruth Shaw OBE, said: “The Premier League Primary Stars Under-11 National Girls Football Tournament is an incredible opportunity for girls across the country to participate in exciting and fun football activity.
“The regional tournaments bring young people from diverse backgrounds together, and gives them a memorable opportunity to represent their professional football club. I hope that everyone enjoys the day, and I look forward to seeing some of you later this year at the finals.”