Developments in local football: GFF, USA’s Blackpool establish player-scouting network

The Guyana Football Federation (GFF), represented by its President Wayne Forde, has signed a groundbreaking memorandum of understanding with Blackpool Sports Club of North America (BSCNA) to establish an International Player Scouting Network (IPSN) to provide Guyanese players with unparalleled opportunities for global exposure in diverse football environments.
The three-year MoU was signed on September 28 between President Forde and BSCNA President Renaud Peters to establish the GFF’s first International Player Scouting Network (IPSN) for the structured identification, recruitment, and retention of players.
The new partnership also facilitates the seamless coordination of international scouting camps to foster stronger connections with the global Guyanese diaspora football community.
BSCNA is a Guyanese football club established in the late 1960s in the United States with the primary objective of promoting and popularising Guyanese football within the diaspora community. Founded by passionate individuals who were once members of the local youth team St. Sidwell’s Rovers, BSCNA is a driving force in advancing the sport and representing the spirit of Guyanese football across the United States and beyond.

President Wayne Forde has said the GFF continues to foster collaboration and engagement with the Guyanese diaspora worldwide through partnerships with organisations that share a common goal of showcasing the incredible talent and potential of Guyanese football players.
“The GFF continues to explore new opportunities to collaborate and engage with the Guyanese diaspora in every corner of the planet. The Blackpool organization has a deep repertoire of football knowledge, experience, coupled with a wide network of Guyanese who maintain an active interest in Guyana’s football,” he said.
Forde has noted that with BSCNA’s wealth of football knowledge and experience, “we believe that together we can achieve great things through our shared commitment to lifting the profile of our national teams on the international stage.”
GFF and BSCNA have said they are fully committed to successful realisation of the shared objectives outlined in the MoU, and BSCNA President Peters has said the agreement is a tangible step towards maintaining a competitive pool of talented footballers for the purpose of representing Guyana.
“I would like to commend the President of the Guyana Football Federation and his staff for entering into this agreement. It represents a tangible step towards addressing the ever present and constant requirement to upgrade and maintain a competitive talent pool of footballers for the purpose of representing Guyana. As the oldest and most successful Guyanese football club in the diaspora, Blackpool Sports Club of North America (BSCNA) eagerly looks forward to playing a part through a coordinated, transparent, and focused effort to identify eligible football players, wherever they may reside, to represent Guyana,” BSCNA President Renaud Peters has said.
He added: “We expect that these efforts will be a component in the resuscitation, progress, and enthusiasm for this wonderful game among Guyanese as Guyana’s football seeks to attain new heights and take its place on the landscape of international football.”
The MoU unites the expertise and resources of both organisations to bolster player development and advance the global promotion of Guyanese football.