The President of the Russian Football Union, Alexander Dyukov, believes that players who have passed through the Youth Football League quickly get into the teams of the Russian Premier League.

The final meeting of the RFU executive committee in 2025 was held on Friday in Moscow.

— This year, the main stars of the Premier League were young football players who went through the UFL system. How do you assess the results of the YFL work and the development of the project this year?

— The Youth Football League is an excellent project, the decision to launch which we made back in 2019. If we take the 2025 season, more than 7 thousand players from 238 teams representing 90 leading football schools in Russia received playing experience in both the federal and interregional Southern Football Leagues.

When we made the decision to create the UFL, the main goal was to provide regular competitive practice to young football players. It is important for the development of athletes. They need to not only train, but also play – preferably with an opponent of comparable strength. If you play against an opponent who is noticeably inferior or superior in strength, such a game will give nothing to either the winner or the loser.

The creation of both the federal UFL in the existing format and interregional leagues allows 90 football schools and their teams to receive competitive gaming practice and develop faster. As a result, we see that players who have gone through this school quickly get into the main squads of teams, including the RPL, and become players in the starting lineup.

YFL is a very important project. I regularly communicate with coaches – both children’s and those working with professional teams. During this time, I have not heard a single word of criticism or regret about the creation of this tournament. A consolidated opinion has formed in the football community that the tournament is necessary and it is important not only to preserve it, but also to continue its development,” the Match TV correspondent reports Dyukov’s words.

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