Execution is Everything
After almost 2 1/2 years of no travel and endless meetings, it was great to attend the Leaders Sport Business summit at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. It was 2 days of debate and networking. It was good to see some old faces and meet some new ones. Great venue and I look forward to the larger edition In London later on this year. !!
I have been quite busy the last couple of months travelling and so I actually had no time to do updates. Needless to say there have been various meetings in Beijing, Miami and Liverpool.
Spent a few interesting days in Singapore checking out the football scene there. I do believe the S league has seen better days but it still offers an opportunity for players who are looking to enter the Asian market. Was good to be back after 11 years.
Was a great experience to be in Hainan for Soccerex 2019. It provided the perfect chance to network and get local insight on the landscape. For anyone who is trying to break into the Chinese market in any capacity then this was the place to be. What is clear is that a local person on the ground is needed in order to navigate what can be a very challenging environment. It was well organised and I am glad I made the trip. It was really worth while.
Great day spent at the Football Transfer Forum at the Etihad stadium in Manchester. Full day of networking, presentations and gaining new insights into the ever changing football landscape. Was good to meet old and new faces and will definitely be in attendance next year.
I have just pent a week in Doha attending a few meetings and going to have a look at some of the developments taking place in preparation for the 2022 World Cup. There is still a while to go but preparations are underway and I believe once they are finished people will be very surprised. Additionally I took a tour of the famous Aspire Academy. It was very impressive to say the least. I understand why many of the worlds top football clubs use the academy to train during the winter break. It has fantastic facilities with state of the art equipment
I spent 2 days at the Wyscout Forum 2018 at the Johann Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam. It was a good opportunity to network with clubs, agents and other professionals in the football industry right before the January transfer window. It was well organised and I would definitely recommend it.
Had a very interesting meeting with the Directorship of FC Nantes. Times are changing in Ligue 1 with the upcoming television rights deal in 2 years, It will have a significant impact on the global reach of French Football. As for FC Nantes exciting times lay ahead. All I can say is watch this space…..
I have just returned from a weekend scouting trip in Marseille. I got to see a few U17 in the National league of France including both Montpellier u17 and Olympique Marseille u17. There is clearly a lot of young talent there and thus will definitely be an interesting region for us in the coming months.
Last week I spent a rewarding few days in Suceava, Romania. I was visiting former 2nd division club Foresta Suceava who after a turbulent season last year, which included relegation to the third tier, are trying to rebuild and get back into the second division. We have placed 4 of our players there on 2 year contracts as well providing a them a new coach in the form of old PSG player Selim Benachour. We wish Matteo Faoila, Lionel Samba, Matteo Riggoni and Fares Djermoune the best of luck for the upcoming Season.
Our athlete David Omoregie was back in Europe for the beginning of the outdoor season. As mentioned in an earlier post he was out in Jamaica training with the MVP track club. This was his first outing outdoors since the Commonwealth games in Australia last April. The time wasn't great but it is early days for the outdoor season.
It was a very curious game at the Stadium of Light this Sunday. Sunderland, who are already relegated, played probably their best game of the season against Championship winners Wolverhampton Wanderers. We can only wonder what the seasons outcome would have been if Sunderland had given this kind of effort throughout past months. There were murmurs in the nearby seats that Sunderland players were stepping up play for their for possible future employers in the crowd. Anyway it was a great day out with great hospitality from The Black Cats!!
MVP track and Field CLub at the University of Technology West Indies
I have just returned from a week away in Kingston. One of our athletes, David Omoregie, has moved there for the coming months to train with the famous MVP track and field club. Known track stars at this club include current Olympic 100m and 200m champion Elaine Thompson and former 100m Olympic champion Shelly-Anne Fraser just to name a few.
It was very interesting to see how they are training over there. The regime includes 6 days of training, 2x a day 3x a week and 5.00am starts. It will be a shock to the system but if it allows David to take his hurdling to the next level then it is a sacrifice worth making. We wish him the best of luck and will be watching his progress very closely.