When do applications for NIU football close?

The sporting application for 2027/28 opened on 1 September and closes on 1 December 2026. You apply to at most three schools in the Swedish FA’s portal. The programme itself you apply for separately in the ordinary upper secondary application in your region.

What is the difference between NIU and RIG in football?

In football there is only NIU. RIG recruits nationwide with first-priority admission, a boarding allowance and state funding; NIU is funded by the municipality and usually gives second-priority admission if you apply elsewhere. What happens on the pitch is set by the same Swedish FA endorsement criteria.

Does NIU football cost anything?

No. The education is free under the Education Act chapter 15, sections 17 to 18. What can cost is accommodation if you apply elsewhere: the municipal boarding allowance requires first-priority admission or a cooperation agreement, and the CSN allowance applies only to independent schools. Check with your home municipality before applying.

For players

NIU football: two applications, one window, no guarantees

By Gustav, founder of Breakout · 4 min read

If you want to start NIU football in autumn 2027, the sporting application must be in by 1 December 2026. It is made in the Swedish FA’s portal, to at most three schools, and it does not replace the ordinary upper secondary school application – you have to do both. Neither one guarantees a place.

What NIU is and is not

NIU, a nationally approved sports education, is an elite-oriented supplementary programme within an ordinary upper secondary programme. The Swedish FA endorses which schools may run NIU in football. The decision is made by the National Agency for Education for municipal schools and by the Schools Inspectorate for independent ones (Upper Secondary School Ordinance chapter 5, sections 27 to 29).

Football exists only as NIU. There is no national sports school (RIG) in football (National Agency for Education memo 2024). In August 2025 there were around 70 upper secondary schools with NIU football and about 1,400 places a year (Swedish FA).

NIU, RIG and Competitive Sport

LIU, the old local sports education, no longer exists. In Gy25 it was replaced by the subject Competitive Sport: 100 to 200 hours, admission on grades alone, no endorsement from the FA. This is how the three forms differ.

NIU: the FA endorses, the school admits after a trial and on grades, at least 400 credits of specialist sport, usually second-priority admission in another municipality, free of charge.
RIG: the FA endorses, nationwide recruitment with first-priority admission and a boarding allowance, state-funded. Does not exist in football.
Competitive Sport: no endorsement, admission on grades alone, 100 to 200 hours, no special admission status.

The timeline if you are in year nine

You make the sporting application at gymnasieansokan.svenskfotboll.se between 1 September and 1 December, to at most three schools. Trials are held in November and December by each school, interviews in December and January. You hear back by 20 January at the latest and reply by 31 January.

The sporting admission does not give you a place on the programme. You must also apply for the programme in the ordinary upper secondary application and get in on that (Solna gymnasium). The school decides the admission, not the FA, and references from your current coach are always checked (Stockholm FA).

What they assess

The Swedish FA’s criteria are “sport-specific abilities, sport-psychological, social and organisational skills, and study ambition”. The FA also states that assessed development potential matters more than previous football performance. The Upper Secondary School Ordinance chapter 5, section 30 says that those best placed to benefit from the education are to be admitted.

In practice the trial carries a lot of weight, but not all of it. Study ambition is a stated criterion, and your grades have to be good enough for the programme regardless of how well you play.

Money and accommodation

NIU is free of charge, like all upper secondary education (Education Act chapter 15, sections 17 to 18). The municipality pays for NIU, the state for RIG. What is not a given is the accommodation.

NIU in another municipality usually means second-priority admission. The municipal boarding allowance – at least one thirtieth of the price base amount, 1,973 kronor a month in 2026, for at least 40 kilometres or two hours of travel – requires first-priority admission or a cooperation agreement between the municipalities. The CSN boarding allowance, 1,190 to 2,350 kronor a month for nine months in 2026/27, applies only to independent schools. Our advice: call your home municipality and ask what applies before you apply to a school elsewhere.

Everyday life

The Swedish FA’s endorsement criteria for 2027 to 2030 set the frame. At least 400 credits of specialist sport. Three to four lessons a week, scheduled between 08:00 and 12:00. The lead teacher holds UEFA Elite Youth A, other teachers at least UEFA Youth B, and at most ten students per teacher. A goalkeeping coach twice a week. Individual development talks twice a term. Transport between school and pitch may take at most ten minutes.

So it is football in the morning and school for the rest of the day, four days a week. Evening training with your club comes on top.

Where NIU leads

The National Agency for Education’s 2024 follow-up of NIU and RIG students across all sports: 95 per cent graduate, against 80 per cent on national programmes overall. Average grade points 15.1 against 14.5, dropout around 1 per cent. But one year after graduation, 40 people in the entire cohort – all sports combined – were professional athletes.

So choose a programme you want to study regardless of how the football goes. The rules are not moving: the 2020 proposal for a joint NIU and RIG system is still unprocessed (Education Committee report UbU10 2025/26), and no new rules apply from autumn 2026.

Common follow-up questions

When do applications for NIU football close?: The sporting application for 2027/28 opened on 1 September and closes on 1 December 2026. You apply to at most three schools in the Swedish FA’s portal. The programme itself you apply for separately in the ordinary upper secondary application in your region.
What is the difference between NIU and RIG in football?: In football there is only NIU. RIG recruits nationwide with first-priority admission, a boarding allowance and state funding; NIU is funded by the municipality and usually gives second-priority admission if you apply elsewhere. What happens on the pitch is set by the same Swedish FA endorsement criteria.
Does NIU football cost anything?: No. The education is free under the Education Act chapter 15, sections 17 to 18. What can cost is accommodation if you apply elsewhere: the municipal boarding allowance requires first-priority admission or a cooperation agreement, and the CSN allowance applies only to independent schools. Check with your home municipality before applying.