UEFA/AFC coaching course in Japan

The coaching co-operation programme between UEFA and the Asian football confederation AFC takes another step forward over the next two weeks. The Japan Football Village in Fukushima, Japan, will host the final training module of the inaugural Asian Pro-Level Coaching Course, which starts on Wednesday.

Technical partnership
AFC asked UEFA last year to give technical assistance to the Asian pro-level course. UEFA’s Executive Committee gave the go-ahead to the co-operation programme in December 2000. A first training module took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in March/April, and further modules were held in Zeist, the Netherlands, and Liverpool, England, in August.

Coaching luminaries attend course
Experienced European coaches will be attending the course module in Japan, which will combine theoretical and practical units with assessments. They are former German FA coach education director Gero Bisanz, who also enjoyed a distinguished career as coach of the German national women’s team, and UEFA Technical Development Committee chairman Jozef Venglos, who guided Czechoslovakia to the 1976 European Championship title.

Watching Japan-Italy friendly
The course participants will attend the international friendly match between Japan and Italy on Wednesday, and will watch one of the two teams in a training session in the run-up to the match.

Invaluable support
AFC considers UEFA’s support to be invaluable as the Asian confederation looks to improve its overall playing standards. ”While it is the players who win matches and championships, the most important person remains the coach, because he manages the players and gets them to give their utmost in performance,” says AFC General Secretary Peter Velappan. “We hope that a time will come when all the top clubs in Asia are managed by professional coaches, allowing us to bridge the gap between Asia and the other continents.”