National football academy opened in Romania

At the launch of the academy, the FRF president, Răzvan Burleanu, said: ”Education is a key pillar around which we will focus our attention and investments in the years to come. Through the launch of the national football academy, we will contribute to the implementation of our vision for the future of sports education in Romania, and the academy will play a key role in the preparation of all the professionals behind the football clubs.”

While they could not be present in person for the launch event, important figures from the world of international football sent video messages greeting the project and the FRF’s efforts to develop football through sports education.

Through the academy and the e-learning platform, the FRF aims to deliver courses designed both for athletes and specialists that work directly with them, and for the professionals that work off the field, involved in sports management, volunteering and other operations.

Supporting football development in Romania

The academy plans to build capacity through specialised education and thereby to contribute to the professionalisation of sports specialists. In doing so, the academy aims to contribute to the development of sports organisations generally, as well as supporting the sustainable development of football in Romania.

The academy has its own website, https://anf.frf.ro/, which offers all the necessary details about the various modules that are and will be available to those who are willing to develop and to improve their knowledge and skills. The first modules for sports instructors and fitness coaches have already been completed, with modules for nutritionists, team managers, and the UEFA Grassroots C licence among the other programmes on offer.

In addition, the FRF has taken the initiative to translate into Romanian the child safeguarding online courses developed by UEFA and Terre des Hommes. These include four e-learning courses dedicated to safeguarding children in football: awareness-raising module, module for coaches, module for staff members and module on child safeguarding focal points. All these modules are designed for all those who work directly or indirectly with children in football. The courses will help staff and volunteers involved in football to better understand their role in creating a safe environment for children, including how to report situations of concern.

This article originally appeared in UEFA Direct 195