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UEFA CFM: 500 graduates

Launched six years ago, the UEFA Certificate in Football Management programme enhances the skills of football family members across Europe and recently celebrated its 500th graduate.

Left to right: Jean-Loup Chappelet (IDHEAP), CFM participant Benjamin Daub (DFB), DFB vice-president Rainer Koch and UEFA education and universities manager Thomas Junod
Left to right: Jean-Loup Chappelet (IDHEAP), CFM participant Benjamin Daub (DFB), DFB vice-president Rainer Koch and UEFA education and universities manager Thomas Junod ©DFB

The magic milestone of 500 graduates has been reached in the UEFA Certificate in Football Management (UEFA CFM), the education programme that is enhancing the skills of football family members across Europe.

Launched six years ago, the UEFA CFM programme has enabled staff from national associations and clubs to look at football's various facets in a new light. It gives them all the chance to improve in their specific roles and make use of greater knowledge and expertise within their daily working lives.

The nine-month programme comprises six interactive online modules and three face-to-face seminars. Key topics are football organisation, strategy and strategic management, operational management, marketing and sponsorship, communications, media and public relations, and event management. Certificates are awarded by the Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration (IDHEAP) at the University of Lausanne.

The UEFA CFM academic content is compiled by academics from universities in France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

The 500 mark was passed at the latest national edition of the CFM programme in Germany, giving UEFA the chance to reflect proudly on the programme's achievements.

"The programme now comprises 500 football managers from all over Europe," said UEFA's education and universities manager Thomas Junod. "This is very good news for European football, which needs this new generation of managers – people not only passionate about sport, but who are equipped with the right tools to master its management."

The "500 club" includes senior national association staff who relish the opportunity to share their own considerable know-how. "It's a big honour to be part of the CFM community, because we contribute directly to the professional management of football across Europe," said Football Federation of Macedonia (FFM) general secretary Filip Popovski.

"Over the years, the programme has proved an excellent opportunity for national associations' personnel," he added. "All of us have benefitted by developing professionally and learning new management skills specific to this sport."

In addition to exchanging expertise and networking with fellow colleagues at the courses, graduates are also being urged to ensure that their new-found knowledge is transmitted throughout their own organisation.

"When we started this programme six years ago, we wouldn't have imagined that the number of graduates would grow so quickly," Junod reflected. "So this is a big achievement for UEFA in our efforts to make football even better, even more successful and even more attractive."

What graduates have said about the UEFA CFM programme
"I thought I had a really good knowledge of football as both a sport and an industry. This course has been an eye-opener for me"

"This is a brilliant experience for people working in football and dedicated to football"

"It has opened my eyes to the wider picture of the internal and external dynamics of international football"

"The UEFA CFM is an excellent way to gain a greater understanding of both your own football association – increasingly professional, diverse and specialised – and the relationships that enable domestic and international, grassroots and professional football to coexist and be mutually supportive"

"I definitely see the administration of football in my own country and in Europe with different eyes"

"I'm happy that I'm not the only one. The more CFM graduates, the better football management around Europe!"

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