Category Archives: MESGO III

The fourth MESGO III session took place in Brussels

The MESGO III participants were in Brussels from 16 to 20 March 2015 for their fourth session, which focused on the legal frameworks in European sport.

They visited the stadium of RSC Anderlecht on the Monday for an introduction to this legal week, then received a warm welcome from the Royal Belgian Football Association on the Tuesday, when a round-table was organised to discuss the role of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Welcome speech by Bob Madou at the Royal Belgian Football Association
Welcome speech by Bob Madou, executive director Business, at the Royal Belgian Football Association

The Wednesday was dedicated to EU law. Hosted by the Committee of the Regions, the participants got to meet Gianluca Monte (case handler, DG Competition) and Julien Zylberstein (legal counsel, UEFA), both of whom are former MESGO graduates themselves. They were joined by two keynote speakers from different DGs of the European Commission: Dimitrios Kontizas (DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion) and Zenon Severis (Sport Unit, DG Education and Culture).

Round table about European Commission and sport at the Committee of the Regions
Round table at the Committee of the Regions with, from left to right:
– Zenon Severis, policy officer, Sport Unit, DG Education and Culture, European Commission
– Julien Zylberstein, legal counsel, UEFA (and MESGO graduate)
– Gianluca Monte, case handler, DG Competition, European Commission (and MESGO graduate)
– Dimitrios Kontizas, head of sector “Free movement of workers”, DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission

European social dialogue was the main topic discussed on the Thursday, before moving on to EU lobbying on the final day.

As usual, a team-building event was organised during the week – in this case some traditional beer tasting in the cellar of “Moeder Lambic”.

Beer tasting in the cellar of Moeder Lambic
Beer tasting in the cellar of “Moeder Lambic”

The next session, dedicated to strategic marketing, will be held in London from 20 to 24 April 2015.

Third MESGO session in London

From Monday 26 to Friday 30 January 2015, the MESGO III participants were in London for the third session of the programme, which was dedicated to the design and regulation of competitions.

MESGO III - Session 3, London - Emirates stadium (Arsenal)_2

Organised by Sean Hamil, director of the Birkbeck Sport Business Centre, which has been an academic partner of the MESGO programme since its first edition in 2010, this third session was an opportunity for the MESGO III participants to visit various illustrious sporting venues, including Wembley Stadium, Emirates Stadium and the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park (the site of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games).

MESGO III - Session 3, London - Olympic Stadium

The MESGO team was honoured to welcome keynote speakers representing the UK parliament, the English Premier League, The Football Association (The FA) and FIFA TMS. The participants were also delighted to meet Andrea Traverso, head of UEFA’s club licensing and financial fair play unit, as well as David Conn, a journalist for The Guardian.

MESGO III - Session 3, London - Birkbeck

On Tuesday 27, the group attended the League Cup semi-final between Chelsea FC and Liverpool FC. The Thursday evening was dedicated to a football-themed historical tour in Covent Garden area, followed by dinner in a traditional pub as part of a team-building activity.

The fourth MESGO session will be held in Brussels from 16 to 20 March and will be dedicated to the legal frameworks governing European sport.

Second MESGO III session takes place in Switzerland

From 17 to 21 November, the 23 participants involved in the third edition of the MESGO programme were warmly welcomed by several international bodies based in Switzerland for their second session, focusing on the governance of sports organisations.

MESGO III - Session 2, Switzerland - UEFA
UEFA welcomed the participants of the third MESGO cohort during one day as part of the second session in Switzerland. Participants had the occasion to exchange with UEFA General Secretary, Gianni Infantino, who participated in a round table entitled “Governance of sports organisations: stakeholder representation”.

On the Monday, they were at the Maison du Sport International in Lausanne, the home of SportAccord and the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF), for a lively round table featuring keynote speakers from both organisations.

The next day, Tuesday, the MESGO group visited the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee, where Howard Stupp, Director of Legal Affairs, presented the structure and policies of the IOC and Antony Scanlon, Executive Director of the International Golf Federation (IGF), gave an insight into the structure of his organisation.

At the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) on the Wednesday, the governance of this global sports organisation was presented by Patrick Baumann, Secretary General and IOC member. He was followed by the Secretary General for Sport of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), Jean-Louis Valentin.

Finally, on the Thursday, the MESGO III participants were the guests of UEFA, which has been actively supporting the MESGO programme as a sport partner since its creation. They were introduced to the UEFA General Secretary, Gianni Infantino, during a very interesting round table involving different stakeholders:

– the European Club Association (ECA), represented by David Frommer, Head of international and Public Affairs (and MESGO graduate in 2014);

– the European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL), represented by the association’s General Secretary, Georg Pangl;

– and the UNI Global Union, represented by Walter Palter, Head of Department (Sport PRO), as the voice of professional athletes.

This second session closed with a visit to the headquarters of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, where a presentation was given by Katie Sams, Chief of Staff in the office of the Director General.

The next MESGO session will take place in London from 26 to 30 January and will be dedicated to various issues related to competition design and regulation.

MESGO III: kick off

The third edition of the Executive Master in European Sport Governance (MESGO) – a unique education programme for sports organisations’ elected representatives and managerial staff started on Monday 29 September 2014.

MESGO III - Session 1, Paris - French Football Federation
The French Football Federation (FFF) hosted the participants of the third MESGO cohort during one day as part of the first session in Paris.

Within the group of 23 participants in the third MESGO edition there are 19 different nationalities represented. The course comprises nine one-week seminars spread over 18 months and takes place in different European cities, and aims, amid an ever-changing environment in the sports industry, to provide its participants with a better understanding of the key current and future challenges faced by the sports sector, while also focusing on the European dimension involved. The last two sessions will take place outside Europe (New York and Rio de Janeiro), focusing on in-depth studies of other sports organisational models.

In his welcome speech at the Maison de l’Amérique latine on Monday 29 September, the Secretary General of FIBA Europe, Kamil Novak, said that MESGO is not only a fine example of collaboration between the worlds of academia and sport, but also a very real example of a project managed jointly by Europe’s major team sports. “This association brings together the European federations for basketball, football, handball, rugby and volleyball, as well as the International Ice Hockey Federation,” he said. “MESGO is unique because these federations, representing Europe’s top team sports, have been involved in the selection of the content used during the programme ever since its launch.

“No doubt, this explains the success that the programme has enjoyed among top sports executives in Europe and worldwide. In effect, this partnership guarantees that the topics covered are closely aligned with the concerns of sports federations and their partners. This course represents a tremendous platform not only for discussion and the exchange of knowledge between our respective federations, but also with representatives of other bodies such as national associations, clubs, governments or private organisations working in sport.”

“You have just started a long journey,” UEFA’s head of national association development Thierry Favre told the participants. “During the nine forthcoming sessions, you are going to meet incredible speakers – a mix of talented academics and very experienced professionals.”

During the first session in Paris dedicated to the context of international sport, the participants were hosted at the Executive Education Department of Sciences Po, at the French National Olympic Committee (CNOSF), at the French Football Federation (FFF), at Roland Garros and at the Maison de l’UNESCO.

Among the keynote speakers invited during that week to present different topics related to this session, the participants were lucky enough to meet Lindsey Eckhouse (NFL), Etienne Thobois (Keneo), Gilbert Ysern (French Tennis Federation) and Jérôme Valcke (FIFA).

The second session will take place in Switzerland from 17 to 21 November.