The women's side have 3 teams that compete in both the football and futsal BUCS competitions. The men's have 3 BUCS football teams and a separate 3 teams who play BUCS futsal. The non-league XI is made up of mostly the 1s and 2s squad members.

There are several ways players get into the football club. The first is by contacting us via one of our contact forms or social media platforms and expressing an interest for joining up with the squad for pre-season. This will require you to submit a 'footballing CV' so we can decide whether your experience suggests that you would benefit from training with the squad in pre-season. Following our intake from pre-season, DUAFC holds trials during Fresher's Week each year where we look to bolster our squads heading into the university football calendar. If unsuccessful at trials, we recommend that players go and play for their college teams and get some minutes. If they are excelling on the college circuit, then they can be recommended to have a trial training period with the 3rd XI (to start with) by our college reps, who are in contact with the captains from the teams competing at the top of the college football pyramid. And yes, this does really happen! Around half of the 3rd XI last year came in from the college system post-trials. Note: The numbers we take at each stage of the process will change year-on-year depending on squad requirements.

The relationship between DUAFC team represented and previous standard played is not as linear as one might think, but as a general rule players will have played one or more of the following: Academy Football in their teen years. A good standard of men's non-league football. D1 American Universities Football. County representative football. Played for a highly successful school 1st XI/ junior club side. This list is not exhaustive, but merely gives an indication of the approximate standard DUAFC expects of its players. However, it is not completely transactional and the club definitely doesn't screen out players based purely on the fact that they haven't played academy football, especially through the trials process.

For an example guide on what a week as a first team footballer at DUAFC looks like, check out our "Week in the Life" page. To elaborate on this for the full squad, please see below. Second XI: Train Monday evenings and Friday Mornings with a BUCS game on Wednesday and potential for games on Thursday and Saturday in our Non-League Side. Third XI: Train Tuesday and Friday Mornings with a BUCS game on Wednesday. The top 3s players may be called upon to play in the Non-League XI, but are likely to be cleared to play college football over the weekend.

Unfortunately, it's not quite as simple as yes or no. All DUAFC athletes are still able to play in Floodlit Cup games for their colleges. However, only boys that are not involved in the Saturday XI will be able to play in the college league system. It is imperative for the club that injuries are kept to a minimum while finding a balance where all boys get maximum chance to get minutes in their legs. Boys are encouraged to limit their playing time if they have been involved in the midweek games. In any case boys are still able to help manage their college teams and get involved in the social side to college football as it is greatly beneficial to spend the time with friends from college.

The Floodlit Cup or 'Floodlit' as its affectionately known is the pinnacle of, not just college football, but college sport. Each year, every college puts out its best team to play a knockout cup competition, as 16 teams are whittled down to just one winner, who is crowned in term 3. Last year's winner was Collingwood. As the name suggests, the cup is played under floodlights on a Wednesday night. The games attract large crowds which generate a fantastic atmosphere, unlike anything most players have played in front of. It is without doubt, the highlight of many college, and often DU players, careers. Whether you're lucky enough to represent your college side in 'floodlit' or you go down to watch, it will undoubtedly create some of the more memorable nights of your college footballing journey - take it from a man lucky enough to win it.

Simply, yes. Every footballer finds their standard at Durham. The college system boasts close to 100 teams, so every player finds their level. Most colleges field at least several teams with the larger colleges fielding 7+ teams - Collingwood field 15 men's teams every week! Beyond this, some colleges run casual 5 aside leagues, pitched at those looking for an opportunity to play some social football.