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!
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.
The 32 MESGO participants, comprising 20 different nationalities, met in Switzerland last week. This first session was presented as an “Introduction to Global Sport Governance”.
The first session of this 8th edition of MESGO took place from the 30th of September to the 4th of October and was co-facilitated by Nathalie Alaphilippe, lawyer at CDES and MESGO programme director, and Jean-Philippe Bonardi, professor at HEC Lausanne. The topic of “Sport Governance” was discussed over the course of the week at the institutional, legal and economic levels and integrated into the social, technological and environmental contexts. Current challenges facing the sporting movement were also addressed and possible solutions were considered.
At FIBA: Nathalie Alaphilippe and Jean-Philippe Bonardi, session directors.
The MESGO VIII participants were hosted in various locations along the shores of Lake Geneva, which were the perfect venues to gain insights and first-hand experience of sports organisations and their governance models: The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the United Nations Office in Geneva and finally the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).
The MESGO group at the United Nations – Geneva Office.
During this intense week, the participants had the occasion to discuss and debate with the leaders of MESGO’s sports partners:
Giorgio Marchetti (Deputy General Secretary, UEFA)
Andreas Zagklis (Secretary General, FIBA)
Martin Hausleitner (Secretary General, EHF)
Matti Nurminen (Secretary General, IIHF)
Sophie Kwasny (Executive Director, EPAS Council of Europe)
As well as having the opportunity to listen to and discuss with other high-level speakers and MESGO alumni:
Kenny Jean-Marie (Chief Members Associations Officer, FIFA – MESGO III graduate)
Piara Powar (Executive Director, Fare Network – MESGO III graduate)
Julien Zylberstein (Managing Director of European Affairs and Governance, UEFA – MESGO II graduate)
At the IOC: Presentation of the IOC strategy by Jacqueline Barrett, Director of Future Olympic Games Hosts, IOC.
At the IOC: Presentation about Sport transformation and new actors by Julien Hess, Director at UCI MTB World Championships Valais 2025) and Jean-Laurent Bourquin, CEO at AdviSPORT.
At the United Nations: Presentation and workshop about Geopolitics and sport by Kenny Jean-Marie, Chief Member Association Officer at FIFA and Carole Gomez, Associate Researcher at IRIS and graduate assistant in Sociology of Sport at the University of Lausanne.
At the United Nations: Presentation about the environmental challenges for the organisation of sports Events by Julia Schmale, assistant professor at the Extreme Environments Research Laboratory (EPFL).
At the United Nations: Presentation about the social challenges for the organisation of sports Events by David Cordobés, Senior Programme Manager (Youth and Sports) at International Trade Centre.
At the University of Lausanne: Round-table discussion about Board diversity in sports federations with Piara Powar, Executive Director at Fare Network, Françoise Emery, CEO at the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme and Laura McAllister, Vice President and Executive Committee member at UEFA.
At the University of Lausanne: Round-table discussion about implementing governance indicators with Jean-Lop Chappelet, Emeritus Professor of public management at IDHEAP, Marco Ienna, COO at World Baseball Softball Confederation and James Carr, Deputy Executive Director at ASOIF.
At FIBA: Case study discussion on FIBA vs Euroleague with Jaime-Albizu Lamboy-Riley, Head of Legal Affairs at FIBA and Julien Zylberstein, Managing Director of European Affairs and Governance at UEFA.
Many thanks to all speakers for their availability and for sharing their experiences with the MESGO participants!
MESGO sessions are also an excellent opportunity for participants to share special moments outside the classroom. This first session included several team-building activities, including a cooking class and wine tasting.
Next stop: Paris – 25-29 November 2024 – for the second session, dedicated to “Competition Design and Financial Sustainability”.
The final session of the seventh edition of MESGO, dedicated to leadership and innovation, took place from 29 April to 2 May in Silicon Valley and San Francisco.
This session was led by Jean-Philippe Bonardi, Director of the Enterprise for Society Center and Full Professor at HEC Lausanne, University of Lausanne.
Jean-Philippe Bonardi, session director and Full Professor, HEC Lausanne.
Throughout the week, MESGO participants had the opportunity to attend the presentations at the following locations across Silicon Valley and San Francisco:
Plug and Play Tech Center
The Computer History Museum
Stanford University
Golden State Warriors – Chase Center
The session covered a wide range of topics related to innovation, leadership and sport. In particular, what creates an innovative ecosystem and its applicability to sport ecosystems; the current technology revolution and the opportunities created by technologies such as artificial intelligence, digital, metaverse, etc; how to develop an entrepreneurial and innovation mindset and how it is linked to leadership; how to manage innovation in an organisation.
A warm thank you to all the speakers for their high-quality contributions to the session!
At Plug and Play: Presentation about Disrupting Disruption by Pascal Finette, CEO, Be Radical.
At Plug and Play: Welcome speech by Saeed Amidi, CEO and Founder, Plug and Play.
At the Computer Museum: Presentation about How was the Silicon Valley eco-system built up? by Crystal Chang, Lecturer, University of California, Berkeley.
At the Computer Museum: Presentation about Silicon Valley: The view of a Venture Capitalistby Eric Buatois, General Partner, Benhamou Global Ventures.
At Stanford University: Presentation about Innovation start-ups – Large organisations versus start-ups by Sukemasa Kabayama, UPLIFT (and former manager at Apple and Tesla).
At Stanford University: Presentation about Developing an entrepreneurial mindset/Developing innovation beyond tech by Larry Keeley, Innovation Scientist, Keeley Innovations LLC & FormerPresident and Co-Founder, Doblin Inc.
At the Golden State Warriors: Presentation about Golden State Warrior and the management of innovation by Daniel Brusilovsky, Vice President of Technology, Golden Gate Warriors.
At the Golden State Warriors: Presentation about Innovation mindset and purpose by Mike Geddes, Co-founder and Chief Purpose Officer, Oakland Roots.
Participants also enjoyed some fun social events, including a Guided Bike Tour of Silicon Valley and a Mixology Course.
The MESGO participants will meet again at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon on 3 and 4 Octoberas part of the viva voce exam session, during which they will each defend their professionalthesis. The graduation ceremony on Friday 4 October will mark the conclusion of the seventh edition of the programme.
After six sessions in Europe and one in Asia, the MESGO team made their way to New York from 23 to 26 April 2024 to learn more about the North American sports model.
Co-directed by Francesc Solanellas, Professor of Sports Management at the National Institute of Physical Education (INEFC) and Jean-François Brocard, Associate Professor and Economist at the Centre for Law and Economics of Sport (CDES), this eighth session aimed to present the organisation of sport in North America from a legal, economic and sociological perspective.
Francesc Solanellas, session co-director and Professor of Sports Management, INEFC.
Jean-François Brocard, session co-director and Associate Professor and Economist, CDES Limoges.
During the four-day session, the MESGO group was hosted at key locations such as Major League Soccer (MLS), the National Basketball Association (NBA), St John’s University and Major League Baseball.
The participants had the opportunity to discuss with distinguished speakers the unique characteristics of the American sport system, such as salary caps, the draft and revenue-sharing systems, as well as the organisation and importance of North American college sports.
At the MLS: Presentation about Ethics and Values in Sports – Some Case Studies from the Soccer World & Elsewhere by Sunil Gulati (former President, U.S. Soccer Federation).
At the MLS: Presentation of the NWSL by Tatjana Heanni (Chief Sporting Director, National Women’s Soccer League).
At the NBA: Presentation about the main regulatory mechanisms – finances, labour market by Matt Doria (Vice President of Salary Cap Management, NBA) and Alex Roth (Vice President and Assistant General Counsel of League Governance and Policy, NBA).
At NBA: Presentation about promotion of gender equality & fight against discrimination in American sport by Ashleigh Huffman (VP of Global Engagement, Institute for Sport & Social Justice and former Chief of Sports Diplomacy, U.S. Department of State).
At St John’s University: Presentation about College sport by David P. Hedlund (Ph.D., Professor and Chaiperson, Division of Sport Management, Collins College of Professional Studies, St John’s University).
At St John’s University: Round table discussion about Sports Agents and Labour Markets with Matteo Zuretti (Chief International Relations and Marketing, NBPA) and Rizvan Magomedov (President of Dominance, MMA).
At MLB: Welcome speech by Patrick Houlihan (Executive Vice President, Labor Relations, MLB).
At MLB: An overview of Baseball’s Minor League Organization by Allison Creekmore (Vice President, Minor League Baseball Business Operations, MLB) and Mike LaCassa (Senior Director, Player Development, MLB).
On the Wednesday evening, participants had the privilege to experience a beautiful New York City sunset and illuminated cityscape during a dinner cruise.
The next and final MESGO VII session will take place in Silicon Valley from 29 April to 2 May and will focus on leadership and innovation.
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!
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!
The seventh session of the seventh edition of MESGO, dedicated to the future of sport, took place in Tokyo from 15 to 19 January 2024 and was directed by Holger Preuss, Professor at Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz.
The Tokyo session was an ideal opportunity for MESGO participants to consider the future challenges they might face as leaders in the sport industry in the years ahead and to analyse their specific organisations in the light of Japanese culture and sport.
During the five-day session, the MESGO group was welcomed in the heart of prestigious venues such as the Kodokan Judo Institute, the Japan Football Association, Japan Sport Olympic Square, Waseda University and Rakuten.
The MESGO group at the Japan Football Association.
Throughout the week, participants had the opportunity to discuss and exchange views with experts on topics as diverse as the future of sport governance and the challenges facing sport organisations; climate change and its implications for sport; the impact of the new geopolitical order and how it affects sport; why and how future game formats will change; how to use sport for development and peace and inevitably, technology.
We would like to extend our sincere thanks to all the speakers who contributed to this session and to Haruki Uemura (President, Kodokan Judo Institute), Tsuneyasu Miyamoto (General Secretary, Japan Football Association), Mitsugi Oagata (Secretary General, Japan Olympic Committee), Hirotaka Matsuoka (Dean, Waseda University) and Kentaro Hyakuno (Executive Vice President, Rakuten) for their warm welcome and consideration.
At the Kodokan Judo Institute: Discussion about Sport in Japan with Dr Yoshio Takahashi (Professor, Tsakuba University) and Toshiyuki Okeya, Deputy Devision Manager, Sport Integrity Unit, Japan Sport Council.
At the Japan Football Association: Presentation about football in Japan and the WE League by Kay Matsuoka (Executive Committee Member and General Manager, Marketing Division, Japan Women’s Empowerment Professional Football League), Haruna Takata (Chairperson, Japan Women’s Empowerment Professional Football League), Miyuki Kobayashi (Executive Committee Member and General Manager, Football Division, Japan Women’s Empowerment Professional Football League).
At the Japan Football Association: Debate about the future of major events governance with Dr Raffaele Chiulli (President, Association of IOC Recognised International Sport Federations and President, Union Internationale Motonautique), Holger Preuss (Member IOC sustainability commission, Professor, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz) and Philippe BlanchardF(ormer Director, International Olympic Committee and Director, Expo 2020 Dubai).
Outside of the classroom, participants were able to immerse themselves in Japanese culture through new culinary discoveries, taking part in judo practice and watching a sumo tournament.
The MESGO group at the Ryōgoku Kokugikan.
The next MESGO session will take place in New York from 23-26 April 2024 and will be dedicated to the North American model of sport.
From 30 October to 3 November, MESGO VII participants were in London for the sixth session of the programme, dedicated to Strategic Marketing and Communications and led by Roman Putsch, Head of Marketing Activities and Digital at UEFA.
Roman Putsch, session Director and Head of Marketing Activities at UEFA.
The session covered a range of topics including sponsorship and TV rights, sport-specific marketing strategies, fan engagement and digital marketing. Insights were gained from a variety of perspectives, including federations, brands and broadcasters, and refined with a unique focus on strategic and crisis communications.
During the five-day session, the MESGO group was hosted in the heart of prestigious venues such as Chelsea FC, Wimbledon, Brentford FC, Tottenham Stadium and The Shard.
At Chelsea FC: Presentation about “The importance of a strong brand – why and how a defining and delivering a differentiated brand will grow your business” by Adrian Goldthorpe (CEO, Lothar Böhm Associates).
At Wimbledon: Presentation about “Digital Marketing – how you can grow fandom and evolve the business model” by Richard Ayers (Chairman, 7L).
At Brentford FC: Panel discussion about the perspective of global brands on the future of sponsorship with Adam Warner (Head of Global Sports and Partnerships, PepsiCo), Mark Osikoya (CEO, Commonwealth Games England), Kieran Nokes (Sponsorship Manager, UEFA) and Annie Panter (Managing Director, Ventures, Two Circles).
At Tottenham Stadium: Presentation about “The media rights market: trends and trajectories” by Minal Modha (Research Director – Consumer Research Lead, Ampere Analysis).
At Tottenham Stadium: Presentation about “Strategic communication: communication as a tool to achieve the organisation objectives” by Amanda Docherty (Director, Dial Square and Programme Director, UEFA).
At the Shard: Presentation and workshop about “Communication in action” by John Bailey (Managing Consultant, Global Communications Consulting).
MESGO sessions are also an opportunity for participants to share special moments. Several team-building activities took place during the week, including a fitness class in Hyde Park and an indoor golf activity. Participants also had the opportunity to attend the Rumble in the Jungle show, a live immersive experience.
The next MESGO session will take place in Tokyo, Japan from 15-19 January 2024 and will be dedicated to the future of sport.
Two MESGO VII participants have been appointed to new senior positions.
Khais Rahmanie has stepped into the role of Senior Manager, Sport, Culture and Entertainment at RISE – Marketing and Commercial Consultancy in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.
After graduating from law school, Khais worked as a sports lawyer for private law firms, where he dealt with cases related to contractual disputes, training compensation, solidarity mechanisms and doping.
In 2017, he moved to the United Arab Emirates and worked for the Spanish professional football league as the Business Development Delegate for Central Asia, with the aim of creating and implementing a cross-functional strategy to increase the value of the LaLiga brand in the Central Asian market.
Most recently, he held the position of Professional Sports Senior Specialist at the Department of Community Development of the Government of Abu Dhabi, where he worked on the Emirate’s Sports Vision and contributed to the development and implementation of initiatives to promote an active and healthy lifestyle in Abu Dhabi.
Paolo Ghiglione has taken up a new position as Global Business Development Advisor at Soccerment, an innovative sport data analytics company.
With a degree in Business and Economics, Paolo’s professional experience focuses on sales, marketing and business development in an entrepreneurial environment.
Paolo has been working for multinational companies and online start-ups for over 20 years and has built up a strong knowledge and experience in the football industry. He specialises in building and managing a high-performance global sales force, designing and implementing business models and identifying development trends.
He was previously Director of Partnerships at Kitman Labs, an industry-leading sport analytics company using AI to optimise athlete performance and health. His role there was to develop partnerships with sports leagues and GBs worldwide.
On behalf of all the MESGO community we would like to wish them the best of success in their new role!
