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Category 1ChampionshipU9 to U21

Does Norwich City run academy trials?

Lotus Training Centre · Colney, Norwich

NoStraight answer

No open door into the academy itself, which recruits through a wide network of scouts covering Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Essex and beyond. The genuinely open route is Norwich City Football Development, a club-run programme (separate from the academy) with Development and Advanced Centres across Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Peterborough, Suffolk and Surrey, plus school-holiday camps anyone can book. It runs its own open trials through the season, and standout players are referred directly to the academy's scouting and recruitment team or picked for City Select and pre-academy squads.

Category1
First entryU9
FeederNorwich City Football Development
Open trialsAcademy: none. Football Development: yes
GirlsNo PGA women's academy
BaseColney, Lotus Training Centre
The real routes in

4 ways players actually get in.

Football Development open trial or holiday camp, then referral to the academy's own scouting and recruitment team.

  1. 01
    Official routePaid, per season
    Norwich City Football Development, Player Development Programme

    32-week Development and Advanced Centres for ages 6 to 16 across five counties, run by UEFA-qualified coaches, feeding into the Category One academy. Open trials are held through the season for new players.

    Official page ↗
  2. 02
    Paid programme
    Football and Technical camps

    Holiday camps open to all abilities, ages 5 to 14, across Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. A stated route to being seen by Football Development coaches and scouts, and can lead to a Development Centre trial invite.

    Official page ↗
  3. 03
    Paid programmeFree tasters, paid centre
    Community Sports Foundation, Development Centres and taster events

    The club's charity runs its own Boys' Football pathway (Mini Kickers through Advanced Development Centre) across Norwich, Aylsham, Dereham, Gorleston, Heacham, Lowestoft, Thetford and Wymondham, with free taster evenings ahead of each season.

    Official page ↗
  4. 04
    Scouted
    Scouted at grassroots

    A network of casual academy scouts, split by county and age band, covers Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Essex and further afield. Reports lead to invitations coordinated through the current club.

Where scouts watch
  • Norfolk and Norwich
  • Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
  • Essex and wider East of England
  • EPPP limit: 1 hour travel U9 to U11, 90 minutes U12 to U16
If a scout calls
  1. Check whether the contact is from Norwich City Football Development (the club's satellite programme) or the academy at Colney itself; only the academy formally registers players.
  2. Norwich's Category One catchment stretches unusually wide, into Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Surrey and Essex. Ask which regional centre and travel rule applies to you.
  3. Camps are open to all and low-commitment; a Development Centre place is a bigger paid step. Ask what happens if your child is not retained at renewal.
  4. Casual scouts are recruited by region and age band, so coverage quality can vary county to county; a strong local league profile still matters most.
Watch out

Three things parents get sold.

Some third-party guides list the academy as based at 'Colney Training Centre'; the current name in club materials is the Lotus Training Centre, same Hethersett Lane site.
Football Development centres are a club-branded but separately paid programme, not academy registration, despite feeding into it.
There is no women's Professional Game Academy at Norwich City; check current provision directly before assuming a girls' pathway exists at every age.
Sources

Last verified 7 September 2026. Spotted a change? Tell us and we will re-check within a week.

Nearby

Other academies in reach.

Category 1

Ipswich Town

Rushmere St Andrew, Ipswich · U9 to U21

No open trials · 4 real routes in

See the pathway →
Category 3

Stevenage

Stevenage, Hertfordshire · U9 to U18

No open trials · 4 real routes in

See the pathway →
Category 3

Leyton Orient

Chigwell, Essex border with east London · U9 to U18

No open trials · 4 real routes in

See the pathway →
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