Foundation Degree (FdSc)

Community Football Coaching and Development

This course turns football passion into action. Develop coaching, leadership, and community sport skills through hands-on learning in club settings, supported by industry mentors. With applied experience, national coaching qualifications, and professional development, you can step confidently into careers in football, education, and community sport.

How to apply Apply through UCAS Book an Open Day Chat to Us

Key Course Details

  • UCAS Code

    C632

  • Start Date

    September

  • Location

    Pontypridd

  • Campus Code

    A

Fees

  • Home students

    £9,535*

  • International students

    £17,200*

  • Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits.
Make an Enquiry

This course combines real-world club experience with practical, applied learning to build skills, confidence, and impact. Learning will take place through placement activity at an EFL club charity, weekly guided study with a designated mentor and residential study visits.

Designed For

Those looking to combine a foundation degree with hands-on experience at a community football club.

Career Paths

  • Teaching
  • Community Sports Coaching
  • Professional / Elite Coaching
  • Sports Management Roles
  • Sports Development Roles

Skills taught

  • Communication 
  • Problem Solving
  • Leadership
  • Teamworking
  • Analytical Skills

Accreditations

  • FAW
  • EFL in the Community

We make a difference in practice, not just on paper. Our courses are designed by people who offer jobs - and taught by people who have real work experience.

Football coaching student talking to a group of children during a coaching session at the Sport Park
Three football coaching students smiling and joking with a lecturer during a classroom session
Two football coaching students observing a match during their placement at Carlisle United
Third year students smile for a photo in the stands of a football ground during placement

Course Highlights

Active Mentoring

You’ll be paired with an experienced club staff member who will guide you, helping you navigate learning resources and set up real-world placements while keeping you active and moving forward.

Hands-On Placement Experience

Put your skills into action with extensive placement opportunities across community football and development. You’ll gain practical, on-the-ground experience that gets you moving and learning in real environments.

Learning in the Workplace

Your studies happen right at your community club. Lectures from USW staff are delivered remotely, letting you learn, apply, and practice in the same space where the action happens. Learn within the environment of an organisation that is an active employer within the sport industry, allowing you to learn from professionals from day one.

Module Overview

Year one builds practical foundations in coaching, PE and health, sport development and leadership, showing how sport works in schools and communities while developing the skills, confidence and professional identity needed for real-world impact.

Football Coaching Foundations (Online) 
Begin your journey into football coaching by developing the knowledge, practical skills, and confidence to plan and deliver inclusive sessions, reflect on your approach, and build your coaching identity for real-world experience. 

Foundations of PE, Health & Wellbeing (Online) 
Develop the knowledge and practical skills to inspire active, healthy lifestyles in young people. Design inclusive PE sessions and wellbeing initiatives while building confidence for careers in education, sport development, and health promotion. 

Introduction to Sports Development (Online) 
Explore how sport shapes communities and drives social impact while gaining insight into development models, policy, governance, funding, and career pathways, building the knowledge and confidence to succeed in the sport industry. 

Leadership Practice in Sport (Online) 
Develop the self-awareness, knowledge, and practical skills needed to lead confidently and ethically in sport, exploring leadership theory, personal values, communication, collaboration, and career planning to shape your professional identity. 

This year deepens applied expertise, showing how football, PE and leadership operate in real organisations, with a focus on inclusion, evidence-based practice, governance, and using sport to create meaningful social impact.

Football for Development (Online)
Deepen your understanding of football as a tool for social change, exploring how inclusive, evidence-informed programmes address inequality, health, education, and crime while preparing you for contemporary football development roles. 

Applied Football Coaching (Online)
Advance your coaching expertise by applying pedagogical theory in real-world football settings, designing inclusive, participant-centred sessions while developing reflective practice, leadership confidence, and the adaptability required for grassroots, community, and academy environments. 

Leadership and Organisational Practice (Online)
Apply and extend your leadership skills in real sport organisations, exploring governance, team performance, ethical decision-making, and applied research while strengthening your professional identity and confidence to lead inclusively and effectively. 

Physical Education and Community School Sport (Online)
Develop advanced expertise in inclusive Physical Education through flexible online learning, designing and evaluating equitable, evidence-based PE and wellbeing programmes while strengthening digital, reflective, and professional practice skills. 

Course Highlights

How you’ll learn

You’ll learn by working in a professional football club while studying online. Most of your learning happens at the club, with short periods at the university to meet, reflect, and work with others. Each week, you’ll take on real projects, solve challenges, and put your learning into action, building the skills and confidence to succeed in the world of sport.

How you'll be assessed

In Year 1, you’ll develop strong foundations through structured portfolios, practical tasks and project presentations, supported by regular feedback. In Years 2 and 3 (Top Up), you’ll take on more open, real-world challenges, including performance appraisals, collaborative projects and applied assessments co-created with EFL in the Community and partner football club charities. 

Reflection and feedback sit at the heart of the course. You’ll test ideas, refine your thinking, and share draft work before final submission. Through work-based learning and mentor support, you’ll evidence your progress and grow in confidence, capability and professional integrity.

Placements

You will be based at professional football club, gaining weekly experience in coaching, sport development, and community engagement. This will help you develop the skills and understanding needed to progress in your career.

Facilities

Students benefit from USW’s state-of-the-art facilities during Residential Visits and, when at their partner clubs, have access to a range of industry-standard facilities, combining hands-on learning with community building. Interactive tasks, digital tools, and a Club Mentor support growth in coaching, reflection, and personal development.

Student Stories

Sports Coaching student wearing a football kit
Taking my coaching ambitions to the next level

Max Roberts

Sports Coaching and Development graduate

A football graduate in a black jacket and hat trains players, holding a green cone on the pitch.
This course has helped me develop the skills I needed to become a sports coach

Billy Liptrot

Sports Coaching and Development graduate

A close up of a whiteboard showing football strategy.
Developing technical skills and confidence as an international student

Shubham Trivedi

Football student

Female fighter tightening karate belt
My long-term passion for Judo led me here

Steph Walker

Sports Coaching student

Sport student, Gregorio, stood in the strength and conditioning room at the Sport park
Developing a sports science mindset

Gregorio Estevez Marchesini

Sport and Exercise Science student

Sam Thomas, wearing sunglasses and a University of Colorado Ski Team cap, holds the NCAA National Champion trophy while standing in front of a snowy backdrop with banners reading 'NCAA Skiing' and 'Champions.'
From USW to Colorado: Sam’s Journey in Strength and Conditioning

Sam Thomas

Strength and Conditioning graduate

Denise has short, light brown hair and glasses. She stands with her arms crossed in a gym. She is wearing a black and red University of South Wales sports jacket with the University logo on the chest. Behind her are weightlifting racks, barbells, and other gym equipment.
Studying Sport and Exercise Science at USW has had a huge impact on me

Denise Cuer

Sport and Exercise Science student

A sport student in a red polo shirt stands in a strength and conditioning gym, captured in a profile shot.
From an injury to a career

Cameron Bailey

Sport and Exercise Therapy student

Accredited by

Exterior shot of USW's Sport Park

  • 96.4% of USW Sport graduates are in Employment and/or Further Study 15 months after graduation (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2022/23)

USW's

Sport Science is top in Wales for Teaching Quality 

(Guardian University Guide 2025)

  • 96.4% of USW Sport graduates are in Employment and/or Further Study 15 months after graduation (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2022/23)

Careers and Employability

Graduate careers

This course prepares you for a wide range of coaching, teaching, and development roles. You’ll build the leadership, communication, and practical skills needed to positively impact lives through football. Graduates progress into roles such as community coach, sports development officer, coach education coordinator, school sport coordinator, National Governing Body officer, PE teacher, or self-employed business owner.

Careers support

From the very start of the course, the USW Careers service is involved to help you build strong employability skills and compassionate leadership qualities. Their input is embedded throughout the course, including during residential study elements, with careers-focused activities and resources built into modules. During Residential Study Visits, you’ll also take part in dedicated sessions where the academic team works closely with USW Careers to support your development.

Industry partners

Our partnerships with English Football League in the Community, around 40 Football Club Charities, CIMSPA, and the Football Association of Wales give students hands-on experience in professional sport. With guidance from Club Mentors, they develop skills, confidence, and work-based learning, preparing them for future careers and providing valuable industry insight.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

UCAS Points: 48 (or above)

Typical qualification requirements:

  • A Level: DD to include at least one A Level in Science, Mathematics, Physical Education or Psychology but to exclude General Studies.
  • Welsh BACC: Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales Grade D and D at A Level to include at least one Science, Mathematics, Physical Education or Psychology subject but to exclude General Studies. 
  • BTEC: BTEC Diploma Merit Pass or BTEC Extended Diploma Merit Pass Pass in a relevant subject. 
  • Access to HE: Pass Access to HE Diploma in Science or Maths with a minimum of 48 UCAS Tariff points
  • T Level - P

Additional Requirements:

Entry criteria detail typical offers but USW considers all applications on an individual basis which means that we could make offers based on qualifications, personal profile and experience. Combinations of qualifications are acceptable and other qualifications not listed may also be acceptable.

All applicants for the course need to be affiliated with one of our partner EFL Clubs.

GCSEs: The University normally requires a minimum 3 GCSEs including Mathematics/Numeracy and English at Grade C or Grade 4 or above, or their equivalent, but consideration is given to individual circumstances. 

Closed for International applicants 

Unfortunately, this course is not currently open to international applicants, please visit our course pages where you can find an alternative course choice. 

 

Contextual offers

We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended, for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer, and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.

USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.

 

We're here to help

Whether you a have a question about your course, fees and funding, the application process or anything else, there are plenty of ways you can get in touch, and we'd love to talk to you. You can contact our friendly admissions team by phone, email or chat to us online.

 

Fees and Funding

UK Full-time Fee

£9,535

per year*
International Full-time Fee

£17,200

per year*

Further Information

Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).

*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.

Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy.  We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.

 

Fees and Funding Scholarships and Bursaries Cost of Living Support

Additional Costs

As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.

*Obligatory 

This fee includes £40 for the enhanced DBS certificate, the Post Office Administration fee and the online administration fee.

Cost: £55.42

Whilst optional it is strongly recommended signing up for this service especially if you are likely to have placements each year and wish to pursue a career post University where a DBS check is a requirement. Please note the service has to be joined within 19 days of receipt of your enhanced DBS certificate.

Cost: £13

Students will have to fund the cost of travel to the residential elements of the course.

Students will need to fund their travel and subsistence costs when on placement. Costs vary, depending on location.

University Quality Assurance

At USW, we regularly review our courses in response to changing patterns of employment and skills demand to ensure we offer learning designed to reflect today’s student needs and tomorrow’s employer demands.

If during a review process course content is significantly changed, we’ll write to inform you and talk you through the changes for the coming year. But whatever the outcome, we aim to equip our students with the skillset and the mindset to succeed whatever tomorrow may bring. Your future, future-proofed.

How to apply

All applications for full-time undergraduate courses or foundation degrees should be made via UCAS. Take the next step: Apply through UCAS. You can apply to us directly for all part-time undergraduate courses, if you’re seeking advanced entry or you’re an international student. To apply directly, please choose the application form below for your preferred start date and mode of study (full-time or part-time.)

Advanced entry

If you already have a relevant qualification or experience related to the course you're applying for, you may be eligible to start at a later stage of the course. For example, students from partner colleges can ‘top up’ their qualifications to a degree by joining us in Year Two or Year Three of a course. This process is known as ‘advanced entry’, you can apply directly to the University for 'advanced entry' using the application forms provided above.

Next Steps

How to apply
Apply Through UCAS
Book an Open Day
Chat to Us