I am blessed. It is truly a privilege to have the opportunity to work in a field that is an extension of my core self. That is exactly what sports management education is for me. An extension of who I am and how I want to contribute to the world. Creating programs, platforms and partnerships that allow people to reflect upon themselves and connect with their professional aspirations makes waking up each morning exciting and worthwhile. It makes me feel that I am living my purpose and doing my small part to add value to people’s lives.
The wild part about this is how much fun one can have while living their purpose. I experienced this a few weeks back when I was with my GISB students in London for the annual GISB-Premier League study trip to the United Kingdom. Thanks to GISB’s long-standing partnership with the Premier League, our students (and administrators) get the extraordinary opportunity to spend a week in London learning how the Premier League and Premier League clubs strategise and operate their businesses. This study trip is one of the many unique components of our fifteen-month post-graduate program, which focuses on providing aspiring sports management professionals with the relevant knowledge, network and tools to create impactful careers within the global sports industry.
The preparation for a trip like this – especially in a ‘post’ Covid world – is intense. The visas, safety protocols, contingency plans, etc., can make anyone crazy. Thankfully, we made it through the fire, and our group of students and a few administrators arrived safely in London, ready for a week of meetings, stadium tours, matches, sightseeing and reflection. Our management had worked with the Premier League international department for months to ensure every day of the trip was filled to the brim with informational and inspiring content and experiences for the students.
I am happy to share that all of the meticulous planning paid off as our students had the opportunity to spend quality time with the following football organisations: Premier League (multiple departments), Chelsea FC, Arsenal FC, West Ham United, Crystal Palace, Premier League Productions, AFC Wimbledon, the Jason Roberts Foundation, Sports Careers Academy and Inventive Sports and see most of the prominent landmarks found within London. Beyond that, they got to attend a Premier League match and participate in a few reflection sessions to ensure they absorbed some of what they were experiencing.
So, as it would be impossible to sum up all of the magic that happened on the trip, I will lean on list creation to help me pull out and express some of the golden nuggets of experiences and key learnings I picked up while in London.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Spending the afternoon in the Premier League Headquarters learning from various departments about how they manage and grow the world’s most popular league
- Learning about the unique ownership model that EFL League 2 club AFC Wimbledon has employed – 75% of the ownership is held by the supporters (definitely something that can be replicated in India)
- Understanding how clubs like Arsenal FC, West Ham United and Crystal Palace use football to create an impact within their local communities
- Sitting in a hospitality suite inside Stamford Bridge Stadium and listening to a presentation on Chelsea FC’s global brand and marketing strategy that was delivered to the new club owners just a few weeks earlier
- Watching my Premier League-obsessed students live their dreams each day as they were given red carpet treatment in the offices of some of the biggest football organisations in the world
KEY LEARNINGS (BASICALLY HOW WE COULD HAVE MADE THE TRIP BETTER FOR THE STUDENTS)
- It would have been useful to put the students through a few week orientation prior to the trip to help them mentally prepare for what they will be experiencing while in London – could cover everything from the London tube system, how to dress, how to greet people, what kind of questions to ask, effective ways to post about the trip via social media, and even how to best connect with the speakers on and offline post the meetings
- The more opportunities for the students to present to Premier League officials, the better – it transforms the student perception of the week from an exposure trip to a study/business trip
- I organised optional morning walks/runs for the students interested in joining me at 6:15 am. Only a few took me up on this opportunity, but I wished that I encouraged this more as these morning workouts were a great bonding experience for those in attendance and helped the students get into the right state of mind to get the most out of the day ahead
- It would have been helpful to make it mandatory for each student to set up a meeting with someone in London outside of the organised interactions – this would help them experience what goes into setting up an international meeting and making the most out of their ‘free time’
- In the future, I would request each student to do one remarkable thing during the week – puts them in creation mode vs survival mode
That’s it. I am sharing several pictures from the week below. Overall, it was a magical trip, and I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to help facilitate and participate in this extraordinary week of learning in London. Those of us who made the trip will never forget what we experienced. A massive thanks to the Premier League for making this possible.
