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The Global Institute of Sports Business (GISB) provides a platform for its students to work with leading sports organizations to increase their understanding of the rapidly expanding sports industry and inculcate global best practices through hands-on experiences.
Students at GISB were part of various industry exposure opportunities during the Premier League Next Generation Cup 2020 in Mumbai. This unique tournament, hosted by the Premier League and the Indian Super League brought together 3 youth teams from the Premier League – Manchester United FC, Chelsea FC, and Southampton FC against 3 of the biggest youth teams in India – Bengaluru FC, FC Goa, and Reliance Young Champs in Mumbai. Through the institute’s affiliation with the Premier League, the students had the opportunity to be a part of multiple activities planned across matchday operations, fan engagement, technical development and community outreach. This was in addition to getting access to watch all the youth matches at the Reliance Corporate Park throughout the week. Select students were also part of a special fan engagement activity that involved Premier League Legend and Ambassador – Alan Shearer and Premier League Ambassador for India – Ranveer Singh.
The week-long exposure for the Premier League Next Generation Games commenced with select students chosen to work on a community engagement activity with the youth teams of Manchester United FC, Chelsea FC and Southampton FC in Navi Mumbai. The Premier League clubs were hosted by St. Lawrence High School, Vashi, St. Xavier's School, Airoli and Ryan International School, Nerul respectively where the school students were involved in cultural and sports exchanges. It was a great platform for the teams from the UK to meet with Indian school students and learn more about Indian culture as part of the build up to the tournament.
The students were then treated to a special afternoon when the Premier League Trophy Tour stopped over at the GISB campus in Kurla, Mumbai. The Premier League Trophy was in the city for activations at schools, youth tournaments and business conferences. As part of the tour, the students were privileged to host the Premier League Trophy Ambassador team for a fan engagement activation, which included a discussion about some facts associated with the coveted trophy.
The students ended a highly engaging first day when they were treated to a Masterclass session on the Premier League’s activities in India conducted by the Head of International Business – Premier League, Kate Hodgkinson. Kate shared her vision of how the Premier League can work closely with Indian football and help develop the landscape. She also touched upon her key project – The Next Generation Cup, a youth tournament that involves the top Indian teams against teams from the Premier League. Her session culminated with her sharing a Live Project with the students, of which the top 2 groups will get the opportunity to present their strategies to senior management at the Premier League Headquarters in London during the annual international study trip.
The second day kicked off when the students were treated to an engaging session on Referee Development conducted by Richard Beeby and Paul Taylor from the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL). Richard and Paul, who have over 25 years of officiating experience in the highest levels of football respectively, spent time with the aspiring sports managers on the refereeing and officiating standards they follow and also how PGMOL is structured to support the Premier League and other top FA tournaments in England. They also touched upon how the implementation of VAR has helped in officiating and ensuring fair decisions are taken in big matches.
The following day was spent with the aspiring sports managers learning how a league leverages their Ambassadors for brand activation. The fan engagement activities kicked off with Premier League Legend and Ambassador – Alan Shearer at the Taj Lands End Hotel in Mumbai where a private event was hosted by Premier League and Star Sports for members from the Newcastle United Fan Club from Bangalore and Mumbai. There was also a special interaction hosted by ISL Presenter - Khuri Irani amongst other activities.
This activation was followed by a Cricket and Football On Ground Video Activation with Premier League legend – Alan Shearer and Premier League Ambassador India – Ranveer Singh at the Gallant Turf Arena in Mumbai. 2 players from each of the 6 representing teams of the Next Generation Cup 2020 also participated in the activation with the Ambassadors on the pitch.
The next day kicked off with the students being treated to a highly engaging Masterclass session by the CEO of Crystal Palace FC – Phil Alexander. Phil, who is currently the longest serving Chief Executive Officer of any top flight football club in England, spent time with the aspiring sports managers on how he has managed to stay in the position and overcome various obstacles during his 24 year tenure. He also touched upon the brand values and positioning the South London club follows and conducted a special talk on how a club can commercialize its stadium asset to increase revenue. Phil was accompanied by Chelsea FC’s Fan Engagement Lead – Jon Scammell for a focussed mentorship discussion at the campus. Select students from GISB are currently working on Digital Engagement Projects for Chelsea Football Club which they will present to the team at Stamford Bridge during the International Study Trip in April. Jon spent some time guiding the students on the expected research and discussing the brief in detail.
The last day began with an important session on the importance of Safeguarding conducted by Premier League Safeguarding Officer – Jim Dyson. Jim, who has over two decades of experience working in Safeguarding across multiple events, spent time with the students discussing the importance of integrating Safeguarding values while working with children of different ages. The Premier League ensures the safety of all children that work with any of its programs and has incorporated a robust model for all trainers to follow. The session was particularly important as safeguarding works as a concept across multiple sports and all interested to work in grassroots development should incorporate the values.
The week-long activities came to an end with a game on the final evening that saw India’s premier youth academy - The Reliance Young Champs overcome hands-on favourites Manchester United in a game that ended 1-Nil. The GISB students working in Matchday Operations played an important role in ensuring the well-being of the school children who had come to watch their favourite teams participate on the final day.
The curtains were drawn on a successful week with the signing of an MoU by Mrs. Nita Ambani and Chief Executive of the Premier League – Mr. Richard Masters, ensuring that Indian football has a trusted partner to support the development of the beautiful game in the country. All in all, it was an extraordinary week full of deep learnings and priceless experiences that the students at GISB will surely take with them as they continue on their journey of transforming their passions into their professions.
