Alvalade to host brand new ladies football senior and youth system

Twenty one years later, Sporting will once again have its own female football team. Actually, not one, but an entire youth system as well. The club will create an under-17 (13 to 17), under-19 (15 to 19) and senior (over 19) team, as well as an academy for under-9's (6 to 9) and under-12's (10 to 12). 

The under-17 team will play in the 7-a-side Lisbon District Championship, while the under.19 team will play in the 9-a-side National Junior Championship. Meanwhile, the seniors will play in the 11-a-side Allianz Liga 1st division.

The Academy will operate for the under-17 and under-19 teams in Lisbon's Cidade Universitária, with three weekly sessions from 19h30 to 21h00. The seniors will train four times a week, from 20h30 to 22h00.

Female football has recently exploded in popularity in Portugal, with official statistics indicating a yearly 20% increase in participants in the sport.