Umeå universitets logga

Floorball is the second largest team sport in Sweden. Although it's popularity the number of children who play floorball decreases from age 10 and drops dramatically after age 15 (Swedish Floorball Federation, 2012). To overcome this situation and to counteract exclusion and early specialization the Swedish Floorball Federation adopted a new player development model, the Swedish Floorball Development model (SFD), inspired by the LTAD model (Ford et al., 2011). The main aim with SFD is to allow for better opportunities for all children and youth to develop their skills, regardless of age, sex, ambition and date of birth (Persson & Blååth, 2011). SFD is based on six development levels in which the player should be able to progress between the levels based on growth and maturity. The implementation work started 2012 through information of the concept to all 22 districts and leadership courses. The purpose of this study is to analyze the consequences of the implementation. Data consists of interviews with representatives of 14 out of 22 floorball districts. The results showed that the classification of teams that would be part of a league changed to be based on the development level instead of age, which means that the younger teams can play in a league of elder teams and vice versa. The interviewees point out that the SFD model contributes to more focus on development rather than results, everyone's right to participate but also that individual players can be moved up and down between ages based on their knowledge and skills. Some of the representatives notes that there are risks with the SFD. It could legitimize elite teams at young ages resulting in, for example, exclusion. The study shows overall that SFD contributes to both desired and undesired effects.