Rebecca's dual role in Marketing

One of the unique things about working at UEFA is the fabulous opportunity it gives staff to take on dual roles, allowing employees to get involved in other activities in addition to their day-to-day work. It’s an opportunity that gives UEFA employees a fantastic insight into the entire football environment and into the organisation as a whole, from the front line to behind the scenes. Rebecca Goodwin explains.

What does your dual role entail?

Rebecca: In my regular job as part of the commercial operations team at UEFA, I lead UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League hospitality, which is a role that involves a lot of ticketing and close liaison with our external marketing agency, TEAM, to ensure that projects run smoothly and according to plan. Another of my key tasks is to prepare the sponsorship season delivery for 32 VSSMs (venue sponsorship service managers) in the Champions League. Alongside my role as commercial operations coordinator, I am working as a venue hospitality manager at EURO 2016 in Toulouse, taking care of all hospitality areas within the stadium, concessions and the staff bistro. My main responsibilities while on-site are to look after all of the VIP and corporate hospitality in conjunction with Do&Co, our hospitality provider. I also ensure that high standards are implemented throughout, particularly where the concessions are concerned.

What attracted you to a dual role in the first place?

Rebecca: Initially, our unit was asked by our head if we wanted to work at EURO 2016. The names of those who expressed an interest were then proposed to other units who could benefit from our involvement. In my case, since hospitality is such a major part of my office job, it seemed the natural and most logical function to fill. Within my unit we work on the Champions League and Europa League club competitions, where only minor changes happen from one season to the next. A EURO is a whole new tournament and a completely new experience for me, and this is what attracted me initially. Undertaking a dual role has a number of benefits in terms of enhancing your career while working at UEFA. Professionally, you have contact with sponsors, suppliers, budgets, and an entire team – you quickly develop the skills of multitasking and thinking quickly, which is invaluable. Personally, I view the dual role as a reward where I am given the opportunity to travel to countries I wouldn’t normally visit and work with people from all different walks of life and cultures.

What's the best thing about your dual role?

Rebecca: I get to experience working at an amazing EURO tournament. UEFA staff always claim that this event is the best event to work on at UEFA and I want to find out why! Because the role is only operational while I am on-site, it allows me to get on with my in-office duties in preparation for the new season of our club competitions as well. Since I have not yet finished the hospitality manager role at EURO, I can only speak about the VSSM role in terms of the best thing about having a dual role. What I love most about being a VSSM is access to aspects of the game which no one normally sees; you wait in the tunnel with the players and feel the excitement and adrenalin as if you were a player yourself. The VSSM takes care of the ‘sole and exclusives’, one of which is the player escorts that hold the players’ hands. Seeing the kids’ reactions to walking out onto the pitch with their heroes is amazing!

Is this the first time you have embarked on a dual role?

Rebecca: I’ve been at UEFA now for five years and I have been assigned as a VSSM for Manchester United FC, Liverpool FC, Arsenal FC, FC Astana, GNK Dinamo and FC BATE Borisov, as well as support VSSM for FC Barcelona and Manchester City FC. Within the commercial operations unit, we all mostly have dual roles working on either the UEFA Champions League or UEFA Europa League. Having a dual role means going on a new adventure each time you leave the office. All the staff that work on these events really love smelling the grass and getting their hands dirty. It’s totally addictive!