Making and keeping contacts is an important part of finding your way in the football industry today, and third year BA (Hons) Football Business & Finance student Fabio Schaupp has recently used his to secure a two-week placement with the Swedish Football League.
The exciting opportunity enabled Fabio to see and experience different fields and departments, as well as give him a wider view of leagues and clubs that could help further his future career.
The Allsvenskan, the top tier of Swedish football, and Superettan, the second tier, run from March to November and April to October respectively, so the off-season gave Fabio a chance to experience the daily operations. He explained how he established his contact within the Swedish Football League – the Svensk Elitfotboll – and how the placement came about at the back end of 2018.
The Svensk Elitfotboll office.
Fabio, who studies at UCFB Wembley, said: “I met the Head of B2C and Events from the Svensk Elitfotboll at a conference two years ago. I always stayed in touch with him and we met last year in Stockholm to watch two league games. I approached him later in 2018, and asked if it was possible to get an internship to see how the league works on a daily basis.”
Although the internship didn’t really link with the business side of his course at UCFB, he was intrigued at the idea that the Swedish League are using technology as part of their long-term strategy.
He added: “The Swedish League is doing a lot of interesting things, especially when it comes to implementing technology and innovation. Sweden in general seems to be a forward-thinking country and therefore I was interested in what the league is doing and what their plans are. Although the Swedish League is a small league, I felt that they were doing something different with a long-term strategy, so of course I got curious.”
It’s clear Fabio is motivated to understand as many different departments within the football industry as possible, and he spent most of his stint in Sweden working on fan activity and the different leagues’ strategies.
“I worked on a project about fan engagement and fan loyalty,” Fabio explained. “I was also introduced to the whole project and new strategies the league has now, so I got a better understanding of what the league is trying to achieve in the future. The best thing about the placement though was the people.
“I think that is always the main benefit of internships and work experiences; to meet people that work in the football industry is crucial in my opinion. I was lucky to have great colleagues and everyone was really kind and helpful. They showed me a lot about their projects and the long-term vision the league has.”
However, despite all of the positives of the placement, Fabio wasn’t best pleased with the freezing cold weather in Scandinavia… but what can you really expect there during winter?
