Description
This book examines the vocational socialisationprocesses that young people must undertake in orderto be offered a full time contract by an Englishprofessional football club. Aspiring youngfootballers often make speculative decisions aboutcareer choice during the years which Ginsbergdescribed as the ‘fantasy period’. This work looks atearly career choice and also the factors thatinfluence an aspiring elite performer. Aftersurveying recent developments within professionalfootball at youth level, a case study of an Englishfootball league club draws upon documents,interviews, privileged insider observation, and asustained qualitative and ethnographic study of thesocialisation process into the incipient occupationalculture. The findings identify the conditions ofhabitus for a professional footballer, the changingdimensions to social class within the game and theeffects recent changes have had on clubs and youngplayers hoping to enter professional football as acareer. This book should interest sports academicsand parents wishing to gain an in-depthunderstanding of the English professional game atyouth level. Alan Sanders Ph.D, had a nineteen year career in teachingphysical education in schools and colleges, with eleven as a headof department. During this time, he studied part time for a Mastersdegree and then a Doctorate at the University of Brighton. He iscurrently a Director at Albion in the Community.
