Girls’ football & talent development
No blind spots: Why girls in goal need more support now
Girls’ football development: DFB centres, goalkeeper training and complementary training days – a look at Bavaria and equal opportunities.
The DFB is reshaping development opportunities for girls – and that is a good thing. There are now eleven performance and talent development centres in the female youth game, five of them added in 2026, with more clubs applying for 2027. By comparison, boys have 58 youth performance centres across Germany.
Ulrike Ballweg, Sporting Director of DFB Talent Development for Women and Girls, sets out a clear goal: no girl should live more than roughly 100 to 120 kilometres from a performance or talent development centre. No blind spots on the map.
A look at the current map shows how much work remains. In the south, FC Bayern, TSG Hoffenheim and SC Freiburg are strong locations – but large areas lie between them, where talented girls have to travel long distances or play in boys’ teams.
Why this matters especially for female goalkeepers
Goalkeeping is football’s most specialised position. Technique, positioning, courage in one-on-one situations – all of this requires focused, regular training. Yet many clubs offer girls no specific goalkeeper training at all. Those living outside a development centre’s catchment area often cannot fulfil their potential.
What we contribute
This is exactly where the professional development days run by Elite GK Coaching on Tour come in. Head Coach Tom Deppisch, a goalkeeper coach involved in DFB talent identification, meets female goalkeepers at their current level – in a compact one- or two-day format, in girls-only groups and with a clear focus on technique.
Our Girls Goalkeeper Camp “She Keeps The Game” took place on 10 and 11 October 2026 at FT Starnberg 09 – already the second girls-only edition after our camp at Whitsun 2026. Female goalkeepers from U13 to U23 worked intensively on technique, positioning and confidence.
A complement, not a replacement
Our training days replace neither clubs nor talent hubs nor performance centres. They complement them – especially for girls in regions without a suitable offer yet. Our wish is for every talented female goalkeeper to have the chance to be seen and supported.
As a mother of two football-playing boys, I know how many hours families spend on the touchline. Girls deserve exactly the same opportunities.
– Sandra Lochmann, GoalConnect Sandra
Figures and objectives based on information from the DFB and Sportschau (October 2026). GoalConnect Sandra and Elite GK Coaching on Tour are not official partners of the DFB.