The FA funds seven national disability squads and two of those, the Blind and Cerebral Palsy teams are going to Beijing to compete in the Paralympics in September.
In Monday's blazing midday heat, I joined a number of journalists to watch, and then be coached by the experienced duo of Tony Larkin (pictured below) and John Ball in the middle of a unique £21million construction project which will see the first Football Academy in the world for the visually impaired and blind in Hereford.
The Football Academy project is being supported by The FA, as part of its efforts to maximise participation through the recent £200million FA National Game Strategy.
Students will be offered the chance to build football training into their chosen programme of studies and the facility will have a new Indoor and outdoor pitch for Blind Football and International Futsal competitions. There will be seating for between 2-3,000 spectators, a swimming pool, gym, state of the art sports massage and medical facilities and conference rooms.
Engineers have even been brought in to ensure the acoustics are the best possible for Blind Football, with The FA hosting the 2010 Blind World Cup.
Larkin is a former professional footballer and is England's Head Coach. He will perform the same role when the team take on the GB name this September.
Today, joining regular England players Ajmal Ahmed, Keryn Seal and Lee Greatbatch, I watched - not for the first time - in awe as the players demonstrated a number of shuttle runs and drills, before donning a blindfold and having a go myself.
The first task was to listen and run to Larkin's voice. In a match situation, the crowd are asked to be silent, with players guided by two Coaches and a sighted goalkeeper who marshals the defence.
To start with, something as simple as running in a straight line was terrifying. Where was I going, when should I stop, would I fall into the boards and hurt myself?
After my confidence grew (a little) I was then paired with Lee. We started flying around the astroturf arm-in-arm to try and build our spatial awareness of the pitch boundaries; the exhilaration and panic was akin to being on a rollercoaster.
Blind football players are trained to keep close control of the ball shifting from right to left foot at high speed, and in striker Dave Clarke, have someone who is unstopable when in full flow. Players when they pass or shoot use minimum backlift to ensure they don't lose their balance.
My first attempt at dribbling was far from successful, a heavy first touch meant I was listening acutely to the ballbearings rattling in the ball to start again.
Shooting practice was next, with Assistant Coach John Ball guiding me to shoot towards his voice from behind the goal. My first attempt saw me nudge the ball away with my standing leg, resulting in an ugly airkick, but finally I made 'keeper Andy Elleray pull off a save. Then it was penalties.
Eight metre penalties are awarded each time a team reaches 14 fouls. But how can a blind footballer be expected to beat a sighted 'keeper? Aj, Lee and Keryn all hit the back of the net to show me the way, so the pressure was on, and the banter cranked up another notch.
John Ball tapped each post so that I could sense where the goal was. I hit a firm shot which was well saved (that's what I was told!) but not being able to see the ball, it was a relief to have made any contact at all. Our collective admiration for the players just grew and grew, as a few party tricks and flciks were then exhibited.
Lee Greatbatch has been involved with the squad for six years. Hailing from Stoke-on-Trent and a Port Vale fan, he lost his sight at the age of four. Since then he has represented England at European and World Championships, and studies Sport and Exercise Science at Worcester University.
"There are a lot of blind children and adults in England and we really want to raise the profile of the team" said Lee.
"If you lose your sight, it's easy to sit at home a lot, but I'd love more kids particularly to step outside their circle and give it a go".
The FA now has over 50 pan-disability football clubs around the country, and Larkin hopes the Football Academy will inspire more players and Coaches to get involved in disability football.
"I've been involved since 1995 and before The FA started to fund the team, through kit and coaching and medical staff in 2000, we had to raise money by collecting in supermarkets before tournaments.
"Now we are building a player pathway with the target of increasing the numbers of blind teams and pool of players.
"In Brazil there are over 80 adult and 40 youth blind teams, compared to just four teams here. Whilst we are slowly increasing player numbers, we're also looking to develop more coaches to train blind players via the County FAs.
"In Beijing, expectations are not high but there are six teams in the competition. We play five group games in nine days, and if we can keep people fit, who knows what a medal might do in lifting the profile of blind football."
To find out more about the Football Academy, you can contact the Royal National College for the Blind on 01432 376374 or visit: www.rncb.ac.uk/football