University of Warwick 5-a-side

Five-a-side is now the most popular form of participation football in England. The nationwide rise of the small-sided format is reflected here at Warwick where five-a-side is booming.

The five-a-side football club is one of the University of Warwick's largest sports clubs. The club runs four ladder leagues during the year, with 20 teams per ladder and on average, 7 members per team. The club provides a platform for students to utilise the university's professional level sports facilities which contrast with the vast majority of city based campuses where students are forced to pay significant fees to join external leagues.

Within UW5, all players can participate in matches on a weekly basis. Teams are also given the opportunity to qualify for either the Champions League, Plate or Ladder competition dependent on their final position at the end of the Easter term. The club also organises a cup competition and tournaments.

One of the reasons for the five-a-side club's enduring success is that players of all abilities can, and are encouraged to, get involved. There is a wide variety in the standard of teams participating. The ladder format of the leagues caters for all levels so that while the Cristiano Ronaldo wannabes compete together, the Titus Brambles do battle as well.