Sunday League footballer reveals how he was recruited for trials in KSI and Gary Lineker’s Baller League

A Sunday League footballer has revealed how he ended being recruited to the Baller League which is backed by the likes of KSI and Gary Lineker. 

The Baller League is a new weekly indoor football tournament coming to the UK for the first time – with former legends such as Ian Wright and John Terry and YouTube stars including TBJZL and Miniminter managing the teams.

12 teams play in six-a-side matches, with the top four teams in the league advancing to the play-off final in May, where the competition’s inaugural champion will be decided.

It will be similar in format to that of Gerard Pique‘s Kings League from Spain and Germany’s version of the Baller League.

Now, a grassroots player has shared how they managed to be selected for the brand-new tournament. 

Detailing the process in an article for Sport Bible, amateur footballer Josh Lawless said there was an ‘enormous competitive edge’ to the trials, which took place on five-a-side pitches at a Powerleague facility in Manchester. 

The Baller League is a new weekly indoor football tournament coming to the UK for the first time

While Lawless failed to make the final cut when it came to the Baller League draft, he said that the competition was so fierce that ‘two players were so impressive that they were signed on the spot’. 

He also described the trials as being ‘mentally and physically’ exhausting while admitting that with ‘tens of thousands of players applying, he was ‘an outside shout to make the draft anyway’. 

Presenter Maya Jama and Juventus forward Alisha Lehmann have also been announced as the latest managers ahead of the launch of the Baller League.

Lehmann, who plays for Juventus, had previously been involved in the first season of the Baller League in Germany in 2023.

The Swiss footballer and former Germany and Arsenal forward Lukas Podolski had been the managers of ‘Streets United’, who won the inaugural season.

The league started in a disused plane hanger in Cologne but has now branched out overseas.

The six-a-side league will take place every Monday until mid-May with 12 teams involved and each match will be live-streamed alongside a weekly show by YouTubers.