PZPN

The event was attended by the PZPN Vice President for Training – Sławomir Kopczewski, Secretary General of PZNP – Łukasz Wachowski, Sports Director of PZPN – Marcin Dorna, Polish U-21 national team coach – Jerzy Brzęczek as well as U-21 strength and conditioning coach and strength and conditioning  coordinator in PZPN – Mateusz Oszust.

The meeting agenda was not only based on a summary of activities carried out by the Polish Football Association in the past year. The plan for implementation of several new ideas was also presented.

The following issues and projects, divided into 10 areas, were discussed and debated:

1. Support for Club Academies – the Double Pass project

"In the first year, the Double Pass programme will cover PKO BP Ekstraklasa clubs, and in the second year – Betclic First Ligue clubs. A department responsible for implementing the project has been created at the Polish Football Association, headed by Tomasz Zahorski, former Polish representative and participant in EURO 2008. We have completed an audit conducted by an external entity, thanks to which we have 105 unique proposals. We will share them with the club academies. We want to combine Double Pass with the Polish Football Association Certification Programme at the grassroots level. For example, academies with a gold certificate will be required to introduce individual development," says Marcin Dorna.

2. U-19 Polish Cup

This is an idea for a new competition, which would start next season. "Many leading European federations have such competitions. It is an additional format for players who face challenges at a critical moment in terms of transitioning to senior football," emphasises the Polish Football Association sports director.

Sixteen teams from the Central Junior League and the best teams from the provincial leagues would compete in the U-19 Polish Cup. The first rounds would be played in macro-regions. In total, six dates would be reserved in the calendar for these competitions, including four UEFA dates.

3. Competition. Structure of the Central Junior League

The main ideas here are to professionalise the CLJ U-19 and U-17 competitions (division into championship and relegation groups), develop the Future project (for the so-called late maturing) and implement an observation and scouting system in provincial teams as well. Analyses regarding the change of competitions from CLJ U-15 to CLJ U-16 are also underway.

4. The "Polish Coach 2.0" project

The preliminary assumptions are that the project will cover 24 coaches. The aim is to prepare them for future work at the highest senior and elite junior levels. The education would be conducted over two seasons and include: examining the coach's profile, mentoring, internships at clubs and national teams, the opportunity to observe the European and World Cup finals in various categories, UEFA and FIFA courses, and media training.

5. Elite Youth B Course

Observing a large outflow of players from the sport on the transition to 11-a-side football, the Polish Football Association wants to train as many coaches as possible working in the U-13 to U-16 categories. The plan includes macro-regional training courses co-financed by the Polish Football Association. This is to guarantee coaching and substantive support in the development of the most talented players.

6. Indoor Tournament for the Cup of the President of the Polish Football Association

This is an event known from previous years. Soon, young footballers will once again compete in futsal matches in the nationwide competition for for the Cup of the President of the Polish Football Association. "We see great potential in the double-approach development of futsal. We have had successes – the Polish women's team has qualified for the World Cup and the European Men's Championship, in which our national team will participate, is coming up soon. It is also an important tool for the development of footballers playing on grass pitches. We incorporate futsal as a substantive part of our training camps and show how to use it in training on grass pitches," emphasises Marcin Dorna.

7. National Play Model. “Strength and Conditioning Preparation”

"This handbook has been developed in recent years by outstanding physical training coaches who combine practice with science. This is a publication that has not been available on the Polish market before and I think it was really needed. It is a valuable handbook regardless of the discipline, a very good compendium of knowledge. It provides comprehensive advice on how to prepare a footballer for challenges that are constantly evolving. The book answers many questions that naturally arise among coaches," says Mateusz Oszust, coordinator of the strength and conditioning coaches at the Polish Football Association, praising the new PZPN publication.

The list of authors includes Marcin Andrzejewski, Remigiusz Rzepka, Jakub Marynowicz and Łukasz Radzimiński. This is the 10th supplement to the "National Play Model" published in 2016. Another one is already in preparation, concerning the goalkeeper's training.

>>>DOWNLOAD THE PZPN THE NATIONAL PLAY MODEL. STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING PREPARATION <<<

"We provide an opportunity to draw conclusions and analyse, we do not impose anything. Every coach can take what they need for their work and their environment. We inspire, we show that coaches can draw on this and we provide a source from which they can do so,” emphasises Sławomir Kopczewski.

8. Individual Development Department

This initiative, which has been running for several weeks, aims to support the most talented young footballers and help them chart a conscious path of development. “We don’t have the space to waste a single talent,” says the PZPN Vice President for Training. “Everyone must be given the opportunity to be treated individually,” adds Marcin Dorna.

You can learn more about the work of the individual development department from an interview with its coordinator, Bartłomiej Zalewski HERE.

9. Polish national teams

“The coaches of all youth national teams form one team with one goal: the first national team,” Kopczewski began. “All Polish youth national teams that started qualifying for the European Championship finals this year have advanced to the next stage. However, let us remember that it is not the result that is most important here, but the individual. Hardly anyone remembers where Spain finished in the last U17 EURO, but everyone knows Lamine Yamal," said Dorna, vividly illustrating the goal of training.

“Despite tactical and technological developments, some things in football remain unchanged, such as technique. We are seeing a return to the roots, which is manifested, among other things, in the pursuit of individual development,” analyses the U-21 coach, Jerzy Brzęczek. His team started the European Championship qualifiers with a series of six victories.

“We enjoy the fruit(s) of many years of work. The training of a footballer is a 10-year cycle. Of the 32 players I called up in the autumn, only two did not go through the the Polish Football Association projects for children and young people. One of them is Marcel Łubik, who was raised in Germany. As Poles and the Polish football, we have nothing to be ashamed of. However, we are also aware of how fast football is moving forward and we cannot stop,” adds coach Brzęczek.

10. Support for the development of women's football

"In 2025, football was a woman", this is how Marcin Dorna began his discussion of the last issue raised at Thursday's meeting, quoting Marcin Kasprowicz, coach of the Polish national under-19 team.

It is difficult to disagree with this statement. In the past 12 months, the Polish women's national team made its debut in the European Championship finals and the Polish women's futsal team made its debut in the World Cup. Younger national teams have also been successful. The Polish Football Association has developed the structures of the Polish national teams and projects supporting the development of talent and has appointed a women's football coordinator – Tomasz Borkowski. The number of girls training is also constantly increasing and one of the supplements to the "National Game Model" is a publication devoted to women's football. The Polish Football Association is still implementing its "Women's Football Strategy in Poland for 2022-2026".