Football Industries MBA students visit FIFA/UEFA Headquarters in Switzerland
The Management School’s Football Industries MBA students recently had the opportunity to visit both the FIFA and UEFA headquarters in Switzerland. They engaged in a series of activities that provided an enriching opportunity to learn firsthand how big governance bodies are key in the development of football globally as well as within Europe.
FIMBA candidates learn about FIFA’s strategic vision – focusing on the association’s global development strategy. Hearing about FIFA’s international youth development programmes such as the U17 Annual World Cup inspired candidates to think about how the football industry can nurture future talent.
Candidates also gained insights into the financial operations such as how finances are disbursed annually across all 211 of the body’s national associations to drive their individual development efforts. This enlightened candidates to the financial intricacies of supporting the growth of football worldwide and how such strategies are utilised.
This financial insight therefore provided candidates with a wider perspective on the overarching strategies employed in sports development and management – and gave them a greater understanding of how financial initiatives intersect with operational tactics. This will prove to be invaluable for FIMBA candidates when applying these insights to their professional endeavours.
A highlight from the visit was meeting former FIMBA alumni who now currently work at the UEFA - this proved to be inspiring for the current cohort and allowed them to gain a wider perspective on how to put theortical insights into practice.
An additional visit to the UEFA headquarters in Nyon strengthened candidates understanding of global sports operations through learning how UEFA functions across a wide array of areas. Candidates heard from a host of speakers and engaged in Q&A’s covering topics such as VAR, Women’s football development and the UEFA club licensing system.
In addition, candidates also learnt about general UEFA structure and activities such as the importance of match operations in the organisation of football as well as pitch conditions and the distinction between centralised and regular matches.
FIMBA Candidate Shimpei Ito shared how “visiting the headquarters of FIFA in Zurich and UEFA in Nyon with my FIMBA colleagues was a truly enlightening journey. It allowed us to see up close the significant role these governing bodies play in the global and European football landscape.”