Top industry speakers at the Football Industries MBA Future Leaders series
Throughout their first semester, our Football Industries MBA (FIMBA) students have attended an exciting array of guest speaker sessions featuring top industry guest speakers at the MBA ‘Future Leaders’ series.
Taking place in the dedicated MBA teaching space, the Brett building, speakers include senior executives, managers, and entrepreneurs from across the world of football, sports and business.
These sessions bring business theory alive with speakers sharing their experiences, learnings and insights to help our students gain a deeper understanding of business issues and career development strategies across the world of football and sport.
A recent event included prominent figures in football who were involved in the conception and growth of the FIMBA. Jimmy Worrall, a FIMBA alumnus from 1997 and now Founder and CEO of Leaders in Sport, commented that:
“The Football Industries MBA is a course which is close to my heart as I was part of the first cohort of students when it was set up by Rogan Taylor 25 years ago.
It gave me the confidence, knowledge and network to build a career in sport and it was so rewarding to experience the energy, drive and ideas from the current crop of international students studying this year when I returned as part of the external speaker programme. In fact, I would say the future of football was right there in the lecture room and I feel confident it’s in good hands.”
Other highlights of the series have included a visit from Paul Barber OBE, the CEO of Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club and winner of the Premier League CEO of the year award for the 22/23 season. Paul shared valuable insights about his journey leading the club into the Premier League and UEFA Europe League.
FIMBA student and Sky Scholar, Jonathan Fadugba attended the session and commented that it “was a pleasure to be in the company of a true industry leader and inspirational figure and learn about how to build a high-performance culture, people vs data and the art of negotiation. Truly inspiring for someone like myself with ambitions of succeeding in the football industry”.
FIMBA student Jonathan Fadugba with Paul Barber OBE (CEO of Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club)
Susan Black, Director of Communications for Liverpool FC, served as another guest speaker where she outlined her career journey and how she got started in the football industry – FIMBA student Ranjith Vengatesa called it an “enlightening discussion” and emphasised the “privilege of connecting with accomplished industry leaders” that the course provides.
Robert Elstone, former Everton FC CEO and Super League CEO, has supported the Football Industries MBA for many years:
“It has always been a pleasure to meet FIMBA students. Consistently, they remain engaged, inquisitive, and eager to soak up insight on all aspects of our amazing industry. It’s also a pleasure to be part of a such an impressive portfolio of speakers.
The experience and diversity of the practitioners eager to support FIMBA speaks volumes for the reputation of the course, and the respect and regard the industry has for its students and alumni”.
Susan Black, Director of Communications at Liverpool Football Club
The sessions also offer the opportunity for FIMBA students to connect with speakers through informal networking and allows them to build up their contacts and cultivate their professional networking skills which is invaluable for those wanting to work in the football industry.
Guest lecturer and former Vice Chairman of Arsenal Football Club and the FA, David Dein MBE highlights how:
“The University of Liverpool FIMBA is gold standard! I have personally been a speaker there on an annual basis since it started some 25 years ago and have always been very impressed with the quality of students. So much so, when I was at Arsenal we employed several of the graduates who proved to be a great credit to the course.”
FIMBA is the original and world leading programme tailored to the challenges of the global football industry. It is ranked in the Top 31 2023 SportBusiness Postgraduate Rankings as the highest-ranking UK and European MBA programme on the list.
A sincere thanks to all our valued guest speakers