Why have a football show? Do we not get enough of the game for 11 months of the year? Apparently not. The estimated two million people who get up on foggy and rainy weekends through the year to involve themselves in grassroots football need to feed their fix come June. And with no home nations at Euro 2008, Grass Roots Football Live is likely to attract the equivalent of a reasonable Coca-Cola Championship gate to the NEC in Birmingham from May 30 to June 1 as Harry Redknapp, Graham Taylor, Dario Gradi, Steve Heighway, Steve McClaren and other coaching luminaries meet the footballing public to trade ideas.

Steve Chittenden, the event’s director, believes that Grass Roots Football Live will soon be sitting alongside the Motor Show, the Ideal Home Exhibition and the Boat Show. It was a successful event at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry last year, but the 2008 model has been refined to the point where touchline dads and progressive young teams everywhere will be asking to attend and work with the professionals.

“There’s so many people who lose sleep, talk, eat and drink grassroots football,” Chittenden, a former Football League assistant referee, said. “All those standing on the touchlines at under-9s, 10s, 11s, 12s each weekend morning, acting like they’re Fabio Capello when they talk to their team, or thinking they’re the next Sir Alex Ferguson. It’s great, as long as it’s taken in the right context, of course.

“I look at myself as a serious manager when I’m on the touchline and now that I’ve finished refereeing, I would like to progress.”

Chittenden has attained the equivalent of his Uefa B Licence, so he is more qualified than the average touchline father. He went to the United States to see their equivalent of the football show, now in its 48th year, in operation. “We just couldn’t believe the inspiration the coaches got from watching the experts live and mixing with them,” he said. “We hope players come along as well, go through ‘The Academy Experience’ and see what it might take if they could step up.”

For more details, visit the website www.grassrootsfootball.co.uk

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