All posts by luczak@cdes.fr

The MESGO team in Barcelona for session 5

MESGO VI, Non classé

MESGO VI participants visited Barcelona last week for the fifth session of the programme. Francesc Solanellas, professor in sports management at Institut Nacional d’Educació Física de Catalunya (National Physical Education Institute of Catalonia) organised the session, which took place from 24 to 28 January and was dedicated to sports events and participation.

  • At circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya: Francesc Solanellas, professor at INEFC and MESGO session 5 director

Various topics and issues were tackled during the week, in particular :

  • Bidding strategies;
  • Governance models and main stakeholders;
  • Implementation of the event, with a focus on risk and crisis management;
  • Post-event issues (legacy, knowledge transfer and economic impact);
  • Strategies implemented by national and international federations to increase participation.

We would like to thank all the speakers that contribute to this session: Lars Haue-Pedersen, Managing Director (Sports Practice, Burson Cohn and Wolfe); Jordi Bertomeu Orteu, CEO (Euroleague Basketball); Roser Queraltó, Chief Business Development Officer (Euroleague Basketball); Eduard J.Scott, International C-Level Sports Business Leader (Freelance); Xavier González, former CEO  (International Paralympic Committee); Jeremy Cottino, Director of Strategy and Projects Execution (AS Monaco); Josep Lluis Santamaria, Director (Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya); Marc Saurina, Commercial Partnerships Senior Director (Dorna Sports); Philippe Furrer, Founder and Chief Engagement Officer, (insPoweredBy) and Co-Founder and Chief Impact Officer (The SHIFT); Patricia González, Group Leader Talent Development Programme (FIFA); Miguel Crespo, Head Participation and Education (International Tennis Federation); Gerard Figueras, former General Sports Secretary (Generalitat of Catalunya); Dr Holger Preuss, Professor (Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz);  Gilbert Felli, Former Chief Executive Officer (IOC); André Fläckel, Head of Gaming and Esports (Infront Sports).

It was also an opportunity for the participants to listen and discuss with key representatives of MESGO sports partners: Robert Rieblinger, 3X3 Development Manager and Florian Pasquet, National Federations and Sport Senior Manager (FIBA) ; Lukasz Wojtowicz, Head of CEO office, Barbara Storaci, Project Manager, Andrea Brighenti, Head of Football Planning and Services and Peter Dennis, Licensing Manager (UEFA).

The MESGO team is very grateful to all of them for their availability and willingness to share their experiences.

At INEFC: presentation about “Bidding for UEFA events” by Andrea Brighenti
At INEFC: presentation about “Bidding for UEFA events” by Barbara Storaci
At Real Club de Polo Barcelona: presentation about the EuroLeague model by Jordi Bertomeu Orteu
At Real Club de Polo de Barcelona: presentation about Turkish Airlines Final Four by Roser Queralto
  • At Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya: presentation of the Circuit by Josep Lluis Santamaria
  • At Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya: presentation about MotoGP events by Marc Saurina
At Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya: presentation about “Risk management for sports events” by Jérémy Cottino
Online: Robert Rieblinger, expert for FIBA 3X3 case study
  • At Barcelona World Race: Round-table discussion about Sports participation with Philippe Furrer, Patricia Gonzalez and Miguel Crespo
  • At Barcelona World Race: Presentation about “Evolution of the impact and legacy of major sports events” by Dr Prof Holger Preuss
At Emilio Sanchez Academy: presentation about “The current esports landscape” by André Flackel
At Emilio Sanchez Academy: presentation about “UEFA EURO 2020 eTournament” by Peter Dennis

As usual, a team-building event was organised during the week, in this case, participants competed against each other in a kart racing competition.

The next MESGO session will take place in London from 28 February to 4 March 2022 and will be dedicated to Marketing and Communicaton.

MESGO V Graduation Week in Mainz

MESGO V

On 1 and 2 October 2021, MESGO V participants attended a two-day session on the Future of Sport. This session, initially scheduled to be in Beijing, corresponds to the second part of the 9th (and final) session of the fifth edition of the MESGO programme.

On 1 and 2 October 2021, MESGO V participants attended a two-day session on the Future of Sport. This session, initially scheduled to be in Beijing, corresponds to the second part of the 9th (and final) session of the fifth edition of the MESGO programme.

Co-directed by Holger Preuss, professor at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz and Jean-Jacques Gouguet, professor at the University of Limoges, the objective was to introduce participants to scenario planning, climate change, new technology and its impact on sport governance.

The session concluded on 2 October, with 22 participants from the fifth edition of the Executive Master in Global Sport Governance (MESGO) receiving their degree certificates at the graduation ceremony in Mainz, chaired by Sean Hamil, director of the Birkbeck Sport Business Centre at the University of London.

Sean Hamil, Thomas Junod and Didier Primault.

Also speaking at the ceremony were Thomas Junod, Head of UEFA Academy and Didier Primault, General Director of CDES. They wished to thank, amongst others, all associated partners for their contribution to the MESGO programme as well as congratulate the participants for having successfully completed the 18-month course. A special tribute must be given to everybody involved within the organisation and structure of the MESGO, but we are especially proud of the participants who managed to remain motivated despite experiencing the difficult scenario of a global pandemic throughout the course of their studies. MESGO participants prove to be resourceful, tenacious and resilient; the qualities needed to be a successful and committed actor in the sporting environment.

Congratulations to the new MESGO V graduates: 2021,Didier Andrist, Irena Bakrevska Miloshevska, Robert Barczi, Katarzyna Biniaszczyk, Yashwanth Biyyala, Michal Buchel, Dimitris Davakis, Ciska Du Plessis Austin, Nerijus Dunauskas, Stuart Dykes, Alvaro Garcia-Alaman de la Calle, Nuno Moura, Gurvan Kervadec, Giel Kirkels, Pierre Locht, Anton Maliutin, Jonathan Martinez, Joanna Poulton, Yury Sadouski, Jovan Surbatovic, Lisa Wiederer, Ales Zavrl.

A MESGO week dedicated to ethics in sport

MESGO VI

After having previously attended their sessions and webinars online, the MESGO VI participants were finally able to meet face-to-face in Mainz, Germany for Session 4 of the programme.

The five-day session, jointly directed by Dr Holger Preuss, Volker Bernardi and Dr Mathias Schubert from the Johannes Gutenberg University (JGU) in Mainz, covered several topics related to ethics in sport, such as corruption, sport for disabled athletes, diversity in sport and environmental sustainability.

A different academic institution hosted and presented each session over the five days: Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz (MESGO partner); Kupferbergterrasse (event location); Mewa Arena (Mainz 05 Stadium); Bootshaus Mainz (event location).

On Friday, the participants returned to the Johannes Gutenberg University to defend their first paper which makes up part of the MESGO thesis; an important and mandatory step towards the completion of their Executive Master’s degree in Global Sport Governance.

The MESGO team at Mewa Arena (MAINZ 05 Stadium).

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the speakers that contributed to this session!

In the evenings, the participants had the opportunity to discover German culture and gastronomy, a particular highlight of the week being a guided tour of the Kupferberg wine cellars followed by dinner at the Kupferberg restaurant.

Visit of the kupferberg museum.

The next MESGO session will take place in Paris from 22 to 26 November 2021 and will be dedicated to Competition design and financial sustainability.

Congratulations Noel!

MESGO III

Noel Mooney, MESGO III graduate, has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the Football Association of Wales.

At the end of August, Noel Mooney will join the Football Association of Wales from UEFA, where he has been Head of Strategic Development since 2011. 

Following his career as a goalkeeper in the League of Ireland (Limerick, Cork City and Shamrock Rovers), in 2006 he joined the Football Association of Ireland and continued to make a contribution to Irish football by looking after the development of domestic football when managing the marketing department. Later on, he also had the opportunity to lead the FIA, ad interim, for six months in 2019.

Over the past decade at UEFA he has created a number of leading development programmes to grow the European game. He can now use his vast experience and wide skillset in the development of Welsh football.

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

MESGO congratulates Pascal Fratellia on his new position!

MESGO II

Pascal Fratellia – MESGO II graduate, has been promoted to commercial director at the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

Pascal takes charge of commercial activities at Eurovision Sport after having occupied the position of Head of Football Rights at the EBU since 2007.

He has a very rich experience in the sector. In fact, prior to joining the EBU, he was Deputy Director of the TV & Marketing Department at the French Football Federation. Among his other significant roles, we should also mention his position as a UEFA Champions League Venue Director for 12 seasons, as well as a FIFA Match Commissioner for some games.

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

A one-week online session dedicated to the legal framework in sport

Non classé

The third session of the sixth edition of the MESGO, initially scheduled in Brussels, took place online from 3rd to 7th May 2021.

The session was co-directed by Nathalie Alaphilippe and Jean-Christophe Breillat, both lawyers at CDES. During this week, dedicated to the “legal framework in sport”, the debates focused, among others, on the disciplinary procedures, EU law, advocacy and lobbying.

We would like to thank all the speakers that contribute to this session: Richard Harry, Chief Executive, Sport Resolutions; Efraim Barak, Founder of Efraim Barak, Sport Law and Consultancy; Loïc Alves, Legal Counsel FIFPRO (and MESGO IV graduate); Richard McLaren, Law Professor, Western University, CAS Arbitrator and Independent Investigator; Stanislas Frossard, Executive Secretary, EPAS – Council of Europe; Florencia Van Houdt, Head of the Sports Unit, European Commission; Michele Colucci, Member of the legal sector, European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO); Julien Zylberstein, Chief of Governance and Stakeholder Affairs, UEFA; Lukasz Bochenek, Managing Director of International Strategy, Leidar – Advocacy Lab, to name only a few.

Round-table discussion about Arbitration in Sport: pros and cons. Is CAS the only remedy?, Richard Harry, Chief Executive, Sport Resolutions

Expert during the role-playing exercise about “EU law and its application to sport’’, Benoît Keane, Keane Legal, Brussels

Round-table discussion about “Inter-institutional cooperation in the field of sport at EU level”, Katarzyna Biniaszczyk, Coordinator of the Sports Group, European Parliament (and MESGO V graduate)

Presentation about “Sport and European social dialogue’’, Paulina Tomczyk, General Secretary, EU Athletes body

Speaker during the round-table discussion about “EU advocacy and sport”, James Ogilvie, EU and Governmental Affairs Manager, UEFA

The next MESGO session will take place in Mainz (Germany) from 27 September to 1 October 2021 and will be dedicated to Ethics and Integrity.

A two-day online session dedicated to Competition Design and Financial Sustainability

Non classé

On 8 and 9 March 2021, the first part of the 2nd session of the sixth edition of the MESGO, initially scheduled in Paris, took place online.

Directed by Sean Hamil, director at Birkbeck Sport Business Centre (University of London), the objective of this session was to give participants a general framework for competition design and financial sustainability by presenting, among other topics, the existing regulatory systems. In addition, during this two-day session, some time was also set aside for thesis methodology and exchanges with MESGO mentors.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the speakers that contributed to this ‘compact version of the online session’:

Tim Pawlowski (full professor of sport economics, University of Tübingen); Konstantin Grigorishin (founder and president, International Swimming Club Energy Standard and head of advisory board and financier, International Swimming League); Ales Zavrl (head of club licensing, UEFA); Philippe Rasmussen (head of financial fair play, UEFA); Didier Primault (general director, CDES); Raffaele Poli (head of CIES Football Observatory).

Presentation about the ‘Many ways to organise a competition’ by Tim Pawlowski, full professor of sport economics (University of Tübingen).

Group exercise on club licensing and financial fair play with the participation of Ales Zavrl, head of Club Licensing (UEFA) and MESGO V participant.

Presentation about the general principles informing sport labour markets’ design and operation by Didier Primault, general director, CDES.

Presentation of an overview of the operation of the international football labour market, and implementation by FIFA of reforms of the regulation of the international player transfer market by Raffaele Poli, Head of CIES Football Observatory.

The second part of this session will be held in Paris this November.

Great start for the 6th MESGO edition

Non classé

The first session of the sixth edition of the MESGO, initially scheduled in Switzerland, took place online from 18th to 22nd January 2021.

The session was co-directed by Jean-Jacques Gouguet, professor at the University of Limoges and Jean-Philippe Bonardi, dean at HEC Lausanne. During this week, dedicated to the “introduction to global sport governance”, the debates focused, among others, on the governance of national and international sports, on corporate governance issues, innovation in the context of sport and the decision-making processes.

The participants had the opportunity to interact with senior leaders of the MESGO sporting and institutional partners:

  • Michael Wiederer, president, EHF
  • Andreas Zagklis, secretary general, FIBA
  • Guy-Laurent Epstein, marketing director, UEFA
  • Stanislas Frossard, executive secretary EPAS, Council of Europe

Presentation about FIBA governance and strategy: past, present and future by Andreas Zagklis, secretary general, FIBA.

Moreover, they were able to listen, discuss and share their views with a large panel of experts in their field, such as:

  • Sean Hamil, director, Birkbeck Sport Business Center, University of London
  • Jean-Loup Chappelet, professor, Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration
  • Alex Phillips, independent advisor
  • Christophe Dubi, Olympic Games executive director, IOC
  • Patrick Comninos, CEO, Basketball Champions League
  • Michael Mrkonjic, head of division, Swiss Federal Institute of Sport Magglingen
  • Miles Templeman, independent non-executive director, Rugby Football Union
  • Yann Le Moenner, CEO, Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO)
  • Mogens Kirkeby, president, International Sport and Culture Association (ISCA)
  • Xavier Timbeau, head of forecast and analysis department, Sciences Po, Paris
  • Guido Palazzo, professor of Business Ethics, HEC Lausanne

The new MESGO cohort.

Presentation of the IOC strategy by Christophe Dubi, Olympic Games executive director, IOC.

Analysis of the FIBA/EuroLeague situation by Patrick Comninos, CEO, Basketball Champions League.

Indicator for good governance: a status report and critical approach to practice by Jean-Loup Chappelet, professor at Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration and Michael Mrkonjic, head of division, Swiss Federal Institute of Sport Magglingen.

Round-table discussion: opportunities for event owners with Guy-Laurent Epstein, marketing director at UEFA and Yann Le Moenner, CEO at Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO).

Sports activities took place during the week to help participants explore their daily mobility habits with some useful methods to help them express their body movements.

See you in Brussels for the next session!

A two-day online session dedicated to Chinese Sport

MESGO V, Non classé

On 28 and 29 September 2020, the first part of the 9th (and final) session of the fifth edition of the MESGO, initially scheduled in Beijing, took place online. Our sincerest appreciation goes to Beijing Sport University: MESGO partner for the Chinese online sessions.

Co-directed by Holger Preuss, professor at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz and Jean-Jacques Gouguet, professor at the University of Limoges, the objective of this session was to introduce participants to the Chinese sport system.

During those two days, the participants had the opportunity to interact with a large panel of experts in their field, such as:

  • Jeanne Gloanec, journalist, Le vent de la Chine
  • Shengxin Li, Vice-Dean, Management School, Beijing Sport University
  • Xiaoqian Hu, professor, Tsinghua University, Beijing
  • Wu Dong, professor, Beijing Sport University
  • Pierre Justo, director, Asia TNS Sofres
  • Louis Liu, general secretary, Chinese Football Association
  • Andrew Mercer, acting general counsel and legal director, Asian Football Confederation
  • Romuald Nguyen, director, French Football Office, China
  • Wolfgang Maennig, professor, department of Economics, Hamburg University
  • Mengmeng Zhang, chief representative China, OL Groupe
  • Larry Zheng, vice president, Shankaï Sports
  • David Dongwei Yang, chief executive officer, HS Sports & Media / Operation partner of CITIC Capital

Round-table live discussion about CFA, the future of football in China and Asia – strategy and challenges: Louis Liu, general secretary, Chinese Football Association

Discussion about Chinese global strategy “belt and road project” and sport with Wolfgang Maennig, professor at Hamburg University

Round-table live discussion about Chinese investment in sport industry: Larry Zheng, vice president at Shankaï Sports.

A warm thank you to all the speakers for their high-level contributions to the session!

Participants also got the chance to take part in some virtual, fun and interactive social events, such as a live Qi Gong lesson and an initiation to traditional Chinese calligraphy.

The second part of this final MESGO V session will be conducted during a face-to-face seminar next March in Paris. The fundamental question of the future of sport will be addressed, notably through the consequences related to the COVID-19 crisis, the new sustainability model and what the repercussions are for sport and its governance.

Congratulations Gurvan!

MESGO V

Gurvan Kervadec, MESGO V graduate, has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the French Volleyball League.

He worked for thirteen years at the French Rugby Union, whilst occupied in various senior positions such as Management Control Officer, Head of Human Resources and Head of Sports Projects Management, amongst others. The last position he held was that of Chief Financial Officer at Stade Français, Paris.

His expertise, combined with his wealth of experience gained from working with various actors of the sports industry will be invaluable to the French Volleyball League.

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