UEFA Certificate in Football Management launched in Sweden

Sweden is the latest European national association to launch a course as part of the UEFA Certificate in Football Management (UEFA CFM) programme, which is providing football administration staff across Europe with enhanced managerial skills and benefiting the European game as a whole.

Thirty-four participants attended the course kick-off in Stockholm, including seven from other Nordic associations: Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland and Norway. They comprised national association staff and representatives of regional associations and clubs.

The UEFA CFM is a nine-month programme which involves studies into a variety of football topics. These include organisation, strategy and strategic management, operational management, marketing and sponsorship, communications, media and public relations, and event and volunteer management.

Participants acquire skills related to management techniques and best practices, which will give them the opportunity to move into senior executive positions in the future and to utilise the skills learned through their CFM studies. A number of European countries have already staged their own national courses as part of the CFM programme. The Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration (IDHEAP) awards the certificates, and the course has been prepared and is conducted by respected academics from universities in France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Swedish Football Association (SvFF) president Karl-Erik Nilsson is a fervent supporter of the programme. "The cooperation with UEFA, giving us the opportunity to organise the UEFA CFM, is an excellent and important part of our development, both on an individual level and for Swedish football overall," he said.

"The possibility for the participants to listen, learn and discuss will bring development on many different levels. To share this with some of our Nordic colleagues strengthens our relations within the UEFA family."

The programme features six interactive online modules and three face-to-face seminars, and content at national courses is being adapted to local contexts, while the overall values inherent in the programme are always maintained. Participants in Sweden also learned, among other things, about the UEFA HatTrick assistance programme for the 54 UEFA member associations, as well as the UEFA club licensing and financial fair play programme designed to bring financial stability to European club football.