Building value from the core
Building value from the core
Rotterdam hosted three days of learning, exchange and practical insight for academy leaders from across Europe.
The European Football Clubs (EFC) Academy Management Programme has completed its first module, with Feyenoord Rotterdam hosting football professionals from across Europe for three days of sessions, discussion and on-pitch observation. Double Pass is proud to support the programme as a partner.
The programme opened with an introduction to Double Pass from Stig Meylemans, Global Operations Lead, who shared more about our work and our approach to football development.
The first day brought together the EFC team, including Michael Verschueren, Chief Club Strategy & Development Officer; Diederik Dewaele, Director of Football; Sara Williams, Knowledge & Education Manager; and Pouya Yaghoubinia, Senior Football Development Manager. They were joined by Feyenoord Academy Director Zeb Jacobs.
Joost Hendrickx, Global Projects Lead, is leading the programme for Double Pass. He is supported by Double Pass experts Dean Rastrick, Academy Director at Everton FC, and Miquel Belmonte, Methodology Stage Manager at Valencia CF. Together, they bring perspectives from three distinct academy environments into the programme.
Building on the opening sessions, the following days focused on three core themes in academy development: football philosophy, player-centred development and team development.
Participants then took these themes out of the classroom and onto the grass, with an on-pitch observation at Feyenoord. Seeing the ideas in a live training context gave the group a shared reference point for discussion and made the link between strategy and daily practice tangible.
Much of the module’s value came from the participants themselves. The sessions were marked by open discussion, shared experiences and differing perspectives on how academies can be organised and led. Bringing together professionals from different clubs and countries created room to challenge assumptions and compare approaches.
Module 1 sets a strong foundation for the rest of the programme, which continues with Module 2 at Borussia Dortmund in mid-November. We would like to thank all participants for their engagement, European Football Clubs for organising the programme, and Feyenoord Rotterdam for hosting us.
Double Pass is proud to support EFC in bringing football organisations together to learn, challenge ideas and strengthen academy development across Europe.
