Pro licence student exchange continues in Nyon

Following a first official event in Nyon last month, UEFA's student coach exchange scheme for UEFA Pro licence candidates continues with the second course of the season at UEFA headquarters in Nyon this week.

The four-day seminar sees 48 Pro licence students from the national associations of Austria, England and Germany visit UEFA as part of a programme that aims to provide added-value support to the established domestic coach education courses via the creation of an international environment and the inclusion of UEFA content and tutorship.

Group discussions, forum sessions, analysis of UEFA Champions League matches and talks with professional coaches will figure on the agenda together with practical sessions.

The scheme's inaugural pilot course was held at UEFA HQ in May, before a second pilot event took place in Denmark in June. The most recent seminar – and first of 2011/12 – brought students from Belarus, Cyprus, Kazakhstan and Moldova to Nyon for a course which was warmly greeted by participants. Associations welcomed the chance to exchange ideas with their foreign counterparts and to examine trends in an international context.

Participants on each course come from three or four European associations and are led by their respective coach education directors. UEFA appoints experienced tutors/coach educators to work with UEFA's technical director and UEFA's football education services at the event, with members of UEFA's Jira Panel also actively involved along with guest presenters.

The Jira Panel will be represented this time by Nico Romeijn, director of coaching academies at the Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB), and the guest speaker will be Gareth Southgate, the former England international who is now head of elite development at the English Football Association (FA).

The programme promises direct involvement on the part of European football's governing body: a major goal is to give extra support to the Pro licence courses run by associations. All four student exchange activities in 2011/12 will be staged in Nyon.

"The aim is to encourage student coaches to move across Europe and broaden their horizons," said UEFA technical director Andy Roxburgh. "This is an exciting project and one which UEFA is convinced will genuinely add value to the coach education work being done by our member associations."