Where Are They Now: Kraig Andrews – Head of Operations at Rangers FC Girls Academy

A UCFB graduate, after graduating with a degree in BA (Hons) Football Business and Media, has travelled back to his native Scotland, working for Scottish giants Rangers FC.

After studying at UCFB Manchester, Kraig Andrews has gained a role at the club he’s supported all his life, working as head of operations at Rangers Girls Academy.

Speaking about his role, he said: “Basically, I organise everything for the girls teams.

“So at Rangers, we have three girls’ teams, we have U13s, U15s, U17s. They play in what the Scottish Football Association called the next gen phase, so next generation of football players.

“I’ve got 50-odd girls across the three teams. My job is basically organising training, the coaches, the physio, the games, any trips we do.

“Basically, just making sure the girls have football to do every single week is my main job.”

He went on to speak about why now is not only a good time to be working in Scottish football, but women’s and girls’ football, too.

“I don’t think there’s ever a bad time to be involved in football, but this year, in particular, Scotland’s getting a lot of attention.

“The Scotland team have managed to get us to another World Cup. I think Scottish football in general is definitely getting a lot of attention again.

“And it’s also a really good time for girls’ football and women’s football,” he added.

“Obviously, you’ve had boys’ academies and men’s football for so long, so they’ve written the script and set a standard.

“But the good thing about girls’ football is we can either follow what they’ve done or we can be a bit more innovative and do different things.

“It’s nice to have a kind of template there to follow, to follow what the boys teams and boys academies have done, but it’s also exciting to think you’ve got the potential to do something a little bit different.”

Kraig then spoke about working for the club he has supported all his life.

“I think it’s quite fortunate,” he said. “I don’t think everybody gets to work at the club that they also support.

“It definitely drives you more and it gives you a lot more passion. I never hesitate to do extra things to the club if I’m asked to or work extra days or do extra things here or there.

“I think in a club you support, you’re doing it for a higher purpose rather than just your job.”

Looking back on his time at UCFB, Kraig said: “I found the whole experience quite fascinating. It’s definitely something that you don’t get to do at other universities.

“Thinking back to some of the guest speakers that we had, so we had people like Roy Keane, Alan Shearer, Sven Goran-Eriksson, Kevin Nolan, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, you’re not going to get them at any other university coming in to do a lecture to you.

“You meet people like that, and it does give you inspiration.”

He finished by offering advice to UCFB students wanting a career in sport.

“What I would say to you is do not give up,” he said. “Persevere, work very hard, do anything extra that people tell you to do or people ask you to do.

“It’s not an easy industry to get into, and once you’re in it, it’s hard work. There’s always things happening, there’s always things changing but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”

You can learn more about the UCFB graduates who have gone on to secure roles across the football and sports industry since graduating.

UCFB has many sports media-related degree courses, as well as degrees focusing on fields such as sports business and sports coaching. Find out more about them and take the first step towards your dream career in the industry.