As part of UCFB’s working partnership with the League Managers Association, students regularly hear from some of the leading names in the football industry. In March, UCFB Wembley student Thomas Emanuele, who studies BA (Hons) Sports Business & Sports Broadcasting, had the unique opportunity to join the UCFB marketing team when they travelled to south London to sit down with Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson to interview him as part of the UCFB LMA Insight video series. Here, Thomas tells us about his day…
Thomas, right, interviewing Hodgson at the Crystal Palace training ground.
The day I had with UCFB at Crystal Palace was a once in a life time experience for a student. The fact that I got to meet Roy Hodgson in person cannot be described in my own words, let alone emotions. For a football fan like me, meeting a manager who used to lead your team and your national side is indescribable.
But I didn’t get to meet only Roy. When we arrived, I got to see the whole Crystal Palace team getting ready to go home. I even had Wilfried Zaha walk right by me, and I had to keep a serious, professional face on instead of having a massive smile which would have shown how excited I was getting!
Getting back to Roy, I had the opportunity to attend his press conference, which, as a broadcast student, gave me a huge insight into what it’s like to be a journalist asking questions. Most importantly, however, I had the privilege to ask Roy the last two questions in the UCFB LMA Insight Series interview, which was the main reason we were there in the first place – and what an experience that was! I sat right across from him and asked the questions that had been prepared.
“This is what it feels like to interview such an iconic figure in English football”, I thought to myself. But most importantly, this is what it feels like to work in the broadcasting world. It was a day I will never forget, and an experience I hope to carry with me in to my future in sports broadcasting.
