Category Archives: MESGO Alumni

Xtra Time session in Dubai: The First MESGO & MIP Alumni Gathering

MESGO Alumni, News

The MESGO and MIP Alumni were in Dubai and Abu Dhabi from 23 to 26 February for the first Xtra Time session focusing on sport in the Gulf region. The session was organised by the MESGO and MIP Alumni Association, the UEFA Academy and CDES Limoges, and led by Joël Pinson, UEFA Academy Programme & Management Expert at UEFA.

Kevin Ashby, President, MESGO Alumni Association (MESGO IV alumnus), Joël Pinson, UEFA Academy Programme & Management Expert and Ciska Du Plessis Austin (MESGO V Alumnus).

In this session, participants explored a range of key issues shaping the sporting landscape in the Gulf region:

  1. Geopolitical Dynamics in Sport: We discussed the role of political and economic factors influencing the development of sport in the region and how these dynamics are shaping both local and international perceptions.
  2. Football Ecosystem & Strategic Initiatives: The conversation included a deep dive into the football ecosystem, focusing on strategic plans and initiatives being rolled out ahead of the 2034 FIFA World Cup. We examined how these efforts are positioning the Gulf region for long-term success in global football.
  3. Sports Development: Key areas of sports development were addressed, with a particular focus on the region’s infrastructure, the creation of talent pathways and the significant investments being made to support the growth of various sporting disciplines.
  4. Integrating Women’s Sport: We explored the challenges and opportunities surrounding the integration of women’s sport into the wider sporting context. The discussion highlighted ongoing efforts to bridge the gender gap and the evolving landscape for female athletes in the region.
  5. Event Hosting Strategy in a Federal State: We explored the complexities of event-hosting strategies within a federal state framework, looking at how coordination between regions and national authorities impacts the ability to successfully host international sporting events.
  6. The future of sports governance and sustainability: The session concluded with reflections on the future of sports governance, emphasising the need for sustainability in an era of rapid change. We discussed the importance of adaptive governance structures to meet the demands of a constantly evolving global sports environment.

We would like to thank all the speakers whose contributions made this session a success. Having representatives from the UAE Football Association, Saudi 2034 bid, Saudi Pro League, Asian Football Confederation, Ethara, Portas Consulting, UAE Team ADQ and the International Cricket Council was a key component of this Xtra Time session and allowed for a strong interaction with the participants.

Many thanks to them for their availability and for sharing their experiences!

At the UAE FA: Welcome speech by Hamad Al Jneibi, Vice-President, UAE Football Association and MESGO VIII participant.

At the UAE FA: Presentation about the UAE Football’s Game Plan by Jan Van Winckel, Technical Director, UAE FA & Houriya Al-Taheri, Former National Team Player and U19 Women National Team Head Coach.

At the UAE FA: Presentation by Karim Mohamed, Head of Systems and AI section & Tariq Al Sherif, Finance Director, UAE Football Association.

At the UAE FA: Presentation about the AFC, Saudi Arabia and the 2034 FIFA World Cup: From Asia to the World by Andrew Mercer, General Counsel & Director of Legal Affairs, Asian Football Confederation (MESGO IV Alumnus).

At the UAE FA: Presentation about the AFC, Saudi Arabia and the 2034 FIFA World Cup: From Asia to the World by Ahmed Alosaymi, Legal director, Saudi 2034 bid & Chief Legal Officer, Asian Cup 2027.

At the UAE FA: Presentation about the Saudi Pro League: A strategic approach by Peter Hutton, Board member, Saudi Pro League.

At the UAE FA: Presentation about The Gulf’s Sporting Boom: Trends, Tactics, and Triumphs by Ali Abbas and Mohamed Berrada, Partners, Portas Consulting.

At Yas Marina Circuit: Presentation about Speed, Strategy, and Spectacle: The Yas Marina Circuit
by Michael Golding, Marketing & Communications Executive Director, Ethara.

At Yas Marina Circuit: Presentation about the Women’s Sport Participation in the Gulf by Petra Santini, Associate Partner, Portas Consulting.

At Yas Marina Circuit: Presentation about Cycling as a Strategic Initiative by Paola Acosta, Head of Marketing, Aurora Group & Head of Marketing department, UAE Team ADQ & Melissa Moncada, President and Head of the Team, UAE ADQ.

At the International Cricket Council: Presentation about Exploring cricket’s governance challenges, diverse formats, and the path to the LA28 Olympics by Jonathan Hall, General Counsel and Company Secretary, International Cricket Council (MESGO III alumnus).

At the International Cricket Council: Presentation about the ICC development programmes and their strategic impact by Will Glenwright, Head of Global Development & Abhishek Shekhawat, Participation Programmes Manager, International Cricket Council.

The MESGO & MIP Alumni at the International Cricket Council.

A massive thank you to all the MESGO & MIP Alumni who attended the session and we look forward to seeing you all again soon.

Congratulations Aldi!

MESGO Alumni, MESGO VII, News

Aldi Topçiu, freshly graduated MESGO 7 participant, has been appointed Executive Director of the Football Association of Albania.

Aldi, who has been with the Albanian Football Association since January 2016 and previously held the position of Head of Legal Department, has been promoted to the role of Executive Director.

An experienced attorney at law, Aldi has been working in the legal industry for over 13 years, where he has acquired extensive knowledge in the fields of International Law, Sports Law, Legal Assistance, Arbitration, and Dispute Resolution.

Aldi has also enriched his professional profile by currently serving as an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector for UEFA, as well as a UEFA Match Delegate.

On behalf of the entire MESGO community, we wish him the very best of success in his new role!

MESGO VII participants graduated at UEFA HQ!

MESGO Alumni, MESGO VII, News

Over two days, on the 3rd and 4th of October 2024, the 26 participants of the seventh edition of the Executive Master in Global Sport Governance (MESGO) defended their theses and received their certificates at the graduation ceremony held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon.

The graduation ceremony was hosted by Sean Hamil, Director of the Birkbeck Sport Business Centre at the University of London. Also speaking at the ceremony were Nathalie Alaphilippe, lawyer at CDES and MESGO Programme Director, and Theodore Theodoridis, UEFA General Secretary. They expressed their gratitude to all the partners for their contribution to the MESGO programme and congratulated the participants on the successful completion of the 24-month course.

NYON, SWITZERLAND – OCTOBER 4: UEFA MESGO 2024 – Graduation Ceremonythe UEFA Headquarters, The House of the European Football, on October 4, 2024 in Nyon, Switzerland (Photo by Kristian Skeie – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)

Congratulations to the new MESGO VII graduates: Artur Azaryan, Claire Bloomfield, Blaž Tomažin Bolcar, Robert Caldwell, Salvatore Civale, Pedro Daniel, Elvira Dushku Adnan Džemidžić, Anthony Ervin, Joao Fonseca, Paolo Ghiglione, Stefan Gunnarsson, Andreas Høj, Nikoloz Jgarkava, Andrew Lockwood, Andrea Marchetti, Erika Montemor Ferreira, Isabel Najera Rodriguez, David Pranger, Khais Rahmanie, Erik Stoffelshaus, Aldi Topçiu, Łukasz Wachowski, Rea Walshe, Patrick Montgomery Wolf, Sharon Zeevi.

Congratulations Jernej!

MESGO Alumni, MESGO VI, News

MESGO VI graduate Jernej Smisl has been appointed Managing Director of PRISTOP, the leading communications and consulting agency in Slovenia’s capital, Ljubljana.

Jernej, who has been with PRISTOP since October 2022 and previously held the position of Director of Corporate Consulting, has been promoted to the role of Managing Director. With a broad range of skills including public relations, market research, marketing communications, marketing strategy, brand management and more, he has made and continues to make a significant contribution to the corporate industry, in advising and guiding companies in their strategic planning and marketing initiatives.

In addition to his role at Pristop, he has held esteemed positions that have further enriched his professional profile, including serving as the former President of HC Celje Pivovarna Laško, a renowned handball team and former EHF Velux Champions League winner.

On behalf of the entire MESGO community, we wish him the very best of success in his new role!

Congratulations Sarah!

MESGO Alumni, MESGO VI, News

Sarah Solémalé, MESGO VI graduate, has accepted a new position as Account Manager in the Membership Department of the European Club Association (ECA).

As of February 2024, Sarah Solémalé will join the ECA from FIFA, where she was Legal Counsel in the Players’ Status Department before joining the Member Associations Governance Services Department as Manager before being promoted to Senior Manager.

With over 10 years of experience in handling transfer and employment litigations, supporting member associations on governance issues, advising on external judicial and arbitral systems, and drafting internal regulations and guidelines, Sarah has now decided to combine her love of football and her exceptional knowledge of sports law and governance-related matters to focus on the development of European football clubs.

On behalf of the entire MESGO community, we would like to wish her the best of success in her new role!

MESGO Alumni gets together in Bucharest in the context of the UEFA Academy Summit

MESGO Alumni, News

The MESGO Alumni Association got together in Bucharest on 22 September 2023, for their Annual General Assembly meeting.

A crucial part of the General Assembly is the committee election of board members, and the MESGO team is pleased to congratulate Kevin Ashby (MESGO IV graduate) on his re-election as President of the Alumni Association.

Kevin Ashby, President of the MESGO Alumni Association

The board is made up of the following members (from left to right):

  • Heidi Beha, Team Lead Development Programmes Europe, FIFA – MESGO IV
  • Kevin Ashby (President), Senior Digital Content Manager, UEFA – MESGO IV
  • Elisa Turrioni (Treasurer), Administrative and Organisational Manager, Bonzini – MESGO IV 
  • Robert Pongracz, Senior Director, Global account management, Football Events, IMG – MESGO II
  • Alex Gerontikos, VP Sales Europe, Sportradar – MESGO IV
  • Ciska du Plessis-Austin, Strategic Advisor and Acting VP Finances, Cycling South Africa – MESGO V (not in photo)

After the election of the committee board members, the objectives of the association were discussed. The key-note speaker, Răzvan Burleanu, President of the Romanian Football Federation and a MESGO IV graduate, then presented the plans of the Romanian Football Federation and spoke about the progress and the transformational path that has been taken to achieve success.

Răzvan Burleanu, President of the Romanian Football Federation

The Alumni association was created in 2015 to produce a formal network of top professionals in sports governance and ensure that knowledge sharing will continue between former MESGO participants.

A huge thank you to all the MESGO alumni who attended the meeting and looking forward to meeting you all again soon.

MESGO mourns the passing of Gurvan KERVADEC, Director General of the French Volleyball League.

MESGO Alumni, MESGO V, News

It was with great sadness and emotion that we learned of the tragic death of Gurvan, MESGO V participant, at the age of 51.

His passion and dedication to sport in general, and basketball in particular, was reflected in his commitment both on and off the court.

A basketball player since the age of 9, Gurvan was also a youth basketball referee and U15 team coach for many years.

Off the court, he put his experience in sports management at the service of leading sports organisations.

He worked for the French Rugby Federation for 13 years, where his multiple, diverse skills (finance, human resources, management) enabled him to reach executive level as head of the sports department. Always ready for new challenges, he then took up the position of Administrative and Financial Director at Stade Français Paris, one of the major rugby clubs in the Top 14.

His desire to learn and share his knowledge and experience with others naturally led him to apply to MESGO, which he joined in September 2018, where, among his many contributions, he wrote a thesis on the social impact of sport, with a particular focus on the inclusion of people with physical disabilities.

After MESGO, Gurvan joined the French Volleyball League, where he held the position of General Manager since June 2020.

For the MESGO family, Gurvan will be remembered as a caring and passionate person with a strong sense of ethics.

The entire MESGO team extends its sincere condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.  Our thoughts are with them at this very difficult time.

Congratulations Jan Peter!

MESGO Alumni, MESGO III

The international governing body of football (FIFA) has appointed Jan Peter Dogge — MESGO III graduate — as FIFA’s Team Lead Integrity.

Jan Peter Dogge begins his FIFA career as the New Lead of the Integrity Team after spending 13 years at the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB), where he successively held the role of Licencing Manager and Integrity Manager.

He has an exceptional knowledge in the field of Integrity and significant professional experience within the football sector.

A great promotion for Jan Peter, who will continue to apply his outstanding knowledge of match-fixing and other sporting corruption abuses to uphold the integrity of football competitions.

On behalf of all the MESGO community we would like to wish him the best of success in his new role.

Congratulations Alexandros !

MESGO Alumni, MESGO IV

Alexandros Gerontikos, MESGO IV graduate, is starting a new position as Head of sales Europe & CIS at SPORTRADAR, the leading global sports technology company.

Member of SPORTRADAR for over 10 years, having held the positions of Sales Director Southern Europe and, for the past three years, Regional Sales Director Western Europe, Alexandros has made and continues to make a significant contribution to the development of an industry that puts the protection of sport integrity first.

His new position as Head of Sales responsible for Europe and CIS since 1 January 2023 comes as no surprise to those who know Alexandros, someone with a very strong work ethics, an extensive managerial experience and knowledge in the sports industry, mainly through betting operators around the world, and a passion for his work.

On behalf of all the MESGO community we would like to wish him the best of success in his new role !

Alumnus Focus: Dennis Gudasic

MESGO Alumni, MESGO IV

Discover the incredible story of one of our MESGO IV Alumni: Dennis Gudasic.

Dennis-Gudasic

“Gudasic is now the Executive Director of one of Europe’s fastest growing football clubs, NK Lokomotiva Zagreb. Nevertheless, living in Croatia has not always been easy. Indeed, in 1996, Dennis Gudasic lived in a nation that had seen almost $40 billion worth of infrastructure destroyed and up to 25% of the economy ruined. It was a shocked country that, in some ways, still has not fully recovered.

The decision to remain would be a pivotal moment in Gudasic’s live, one that would eventually help birth not only an independent Croatia, but a prototype football club that now stands as a beacon to all fledgling sporting teams across Europe”.

Read the full article here: https://www.fourfourtwo.com.au/news/the-aussie-behind-fran-karacics-remarkable-socceroos-journey-492718

Credits: Lucas Radbourne-Pugh