INTERNATIONAL CERTIFICATE IN SPORTS MANAGEMENT
Interview with

Tarek Kabbary | graduate 2016

What is your current professional activity? and your involvement in sport?
Currently, I am executive director of a private football academy (Academy Talented Football). This academy is my own project and I am currently working on the development of my academic knowledge. This is a practical field of sports activity and we are currently trying to do a technical study on the implementation of my graduation project, which was introduced during the FIFA/CIES Executive Programme in Sports Management at Cairo University. The project was on the development of traditional clubs to keep up with the professional era. My work now is to establish a sports consulting firm to provide advice and technical support to help the development of our prestigious clubs who have a long history and the poor clubs who currently lack the management methods and sports marketing tools needed in the modern era.
 
Why did you choose to attend the FIFA/CIES Programme in Sport Management at Cairo University?
I attended the FIFA/CIES Executive Programme at Cairo University to leverage my existing expertise thanks to the value of such an entity as the FIFA/CIES International University Network.
 
What were your expectations before the start of the course? and… were they met?
The course exceeded my expectations and I achieved far more than I expected.
 
What would you say are the key strengths of the FIFA/CIES Programme in Sport Management?
 The information covered in each subject
 The dynamic interaction between the lecturers and the students
 The link between the theoretical subjects and the applied aspects
 The presence of many alumni of the FIFA/CIES Executive Programme, who helped to add a lot of credibility, importance and value to the course
 The vast external expertise we got through international guest speakers’ lectures (such as Jair Bertoni, Rory Steyn, etc.). They added their experience and raised our interest and desire to benefit from such outside expertise.
 
What benefits (on a personal and/or professional level) did you gain from attending the course?
The most important experience gained was on a personal level:
 The acquisition of new scientific information in the field of sports in the various programme materials
 The acquisition of qualified expertise to break into the sports field and specifically in the field of sports administration
 Put the first building blocks towards reaching executive positions in sports organizations and trying to communicate with those institutions
 Build a network of social relations with sports leaders and institutions working in the field of sports
Benefits gained on a professional level:
 Benefit from the experiences of leaders who gave guest lectures during the programme
 The change that has happened in my beliefs and my thoughts about investing in the field of sports
 The trend towards the formation and setting up of private consultancy companies for sports clubs and sports institutions
 Opened new horizons towards the opportunities for further studies in the field of sports, and especially the FIFA Master course
 
What is your best memory/highlight of the course?
That moment at the graduation ceremony when your certificate is handed out to you. I was so proud to be joining the FIFA/CIES Network.
 
Would you recommend the FIFA/CIES Programme in Sport Management? Why?
I would definitely recommend to all of my friends to get onto the programme so they, too, can take advantage of the expertise, which is available on the course.