England Futsal opens 2026-27 National Youth Cup qualifier entries with expansion to Under-18 category
England Futsal has today opened public entries for the 2026-27 National Youth Cup regional qualifiers, which will be hosted by 12 of our Youth Development Partners nationwide, covering the mixed and girls categories at the U14, U16 and, for the first time, U18 age groups.
Head of Development & Technical Lead, Sion Kitson, said:
“We’re delighted to be announcing the National Youth Cup for the 2026/27 season and would like to thank all of our host youth development partners for their continued support in helping us deliver the competition.
This year, we’re particularly pleased to pilot an Under-18s category, creating further opportunities for young players to experience age-group futsal before, or alongside, the transition into senior futsal.
We want to give as many young players as possible the opportunity to continue to access the experience of playing in the National Youth Cup and developing within the game.
We’ve also made some adjustments to the competition timeline, with regional qualifiers taking place before Christmas and the knockout rounds beginning from January.
We’re looking forward to seeing teams from across the country get involved and making this year’s National Youth Cup another great celebration of youth futsal.”
The 12 Host Partners
Bucks Futsal Club - South Midlands - U14 Girls, U14 Mixed, U16 Girls, U16 Mixed, U18 Girls, U18 Mixed
Dorset Futsal Club - South West - U14 Girls, U14 Mixed, U16 Girls, U16 Mixed, U18 Mixed
FC Devon - South West - U14 Girls, U14 Mixed, U16 Girls, U16 Mixed
Futsoul - South West - U14 Girls, U14 Mixed, U16 Girls, U16 Mixed, U18 Girls, U18 Mixed
International Futsal Academy - U16 Girls, U16 Mixed, U18 Girls, U18 Mixed
Manchester Futsal Club - U14 Mixed, U16 Mixed, U18 Mixed
Project Futsal Liverpool - U14 Girls, U16 Girls
Repton School - U14 Girls
South West London Diamonds - U14 Girls, U14 Mixed, U16 Girls, U16 Mixed
The Futsal Club - U14 Mixed
UK Futsal Leagues - U14 Girls, U14 Mixed, U16 Girls
University of Sunderland - U14 Girls, U14 Mixed, U16 Girls, U16 Mixed, U18 Girls, U18 Mixed
How do I enter my team into a National Youth Cup Qualifier?
There are three key steps that a team needs to follow in order to enter and register for the National Youth Cup qualifiers:
Club Registration - Complete the FREE Club Registration form to access our Sport:80 system and enter qualifiers.
Tournament Entry - Register and pay the tournament entry fee for the event that you would like to enter - you can explore the event calendar here.
Youth Player Registration - Ensure that all competing players have completed the Youth Player Registration form, so that you can add them to your tournament squad - the full user guide for this process is here.
TEAM ENTRY DEADLINE - Team entries for all National Youth Cup Qualifiers close on Friday 16th October at 17:00.
Important Information
Tournament entry fees are non-refundable, and entry to all events is not confirmed until the entry fee is paid. Your payment confirmation email is your only entry ticket.
Unless stated otherwise, there are only five team spaces per qualifier. Once this limit has been reached and entries are closed, please email competitions@englandfutsal.com (clearly stating National Youth Cup in the subject line) with your team contact details and chosen event, and we will add you to the waiting list.
With a view to growing the game and widening opportunities, please only enter one team per club per event to begin with, and if you would like the opportunity to enter a second team, email us and we will look to accommodate space-dependent.
Age restrictions work on a two-year basis, so for U14 events, both U13 and U14 players are eligible.
For the U16 competition, both U15 and U16 players are eligible. The cut-off date for all age restrictions is midnight on August 31st.
The U18 section allows players at U16, U17 and U18 level to play, in line with FA football guidelines. To play in an Under-18 (U18) competition under The FA rules, a player must have attained the age of 15 by midnight on the 31st of August of the relevant playing season.
The finalised rules for the 2026-27 National Youth Cup will be published by Wednesday 7th October 2026.
Tournament Entry Fees go directly to our host partners, Youth Player Registration Fees go directly to England Futsal.
The Youth Player Registration fee is £5 per player, and covers the individual for the entire 2026-27 season in any England Futsal youth competition, not just the National Youth Cup.
If you are stuck at any point of the registration process, please first consult our Sport:80 User Guide for Youth Competition Entry below.
If you are still stuck after this, please email competitions@englandfutsal.com, clearly stating National Youth Cup in the subject line.
National Youth Cup 2026-27 Competition Structure and Timelines
The 2025-26 National Youth Cup culminated in our Finals Day at Repton School in May where Sala Futsal Club (U16 Girls), City of Peterborough Futsal Centre (U16 mixed), Merseyside County Schools FA (U14 Girls) and Whickham FC (U14 Mixed) were all crowned national champions.
More than 100 teams and 1000 youth players took part in the competition between February and May.
This year, the regional qualifiers have been moved this side of Christmas, taking place from late October to December 2026, leaving more time for the knockout rounds to take place, between January and April 2027.
