UEFA Assist: five years of Europe's helping hand for world football

This week, UEFA Assist and its team of development experts celebrate five years of contributing to the growth of the game outside of Europe.

Assist's first programmes kicked off back in November 2017 to provide UEFA's sister confederations - AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL and OFC – with knowledge-sharing and development opportunities, sharing European football's expertise and experience in a spirit of friendship and solidarity for the growth of the game around the world.

Over the past five years, Assist has channelled support to more than 400 projects in 120 countries, with many of UEFA's 55 member national associations contributing their own resources on top of UEFA funding to help raise the global game to its highest possible levels.

Below, we take a closer look at five examples from five continents over the past five years that highlight the invaluable impact of Assist, both on and off the pitch.

Asian Football Confederation (AFC): Off-field organisation

A full house in Bhutan

Thanks to expert guidance and examples from UEFA, as well as the Estonian Football Association (EFA) and the Football Association of Wales (FAW), since 2021, 18 Asian federations have taken their marketing, communications and commercialisation to the next level, focusing on important topics such as sponsorship, social media and data collection.

The programme featured a series of pandemic-proof online marketing and income-generation workshops, where participants could also learn from each other, exchange best practices and share success stories.

In Bhutan, for example, the football federation's rebrand as "Home of Happiness" has had a huge impact, with revamped digital content and innovative fan engagement events creating a huge growth in attendance at league matches and more effective, sustainable revenue generation.

Confederation of African Football (CAF): Leagues for nations

Attendees at Assist's League Development Programme in Botswana

European football has some of the most professional and successful professional leagues in the world, so UEFA's expertise can make a real difference to help build the game on other continents.

Since 2019, Assist has worked with 15 African national associations to help improve their existing league organisation and structures, develop the professionalism of clubs and their commercial strategies, sharing the best of European knowledge and experience.

Our experts have also been on hand to provide online mentoring, which ensures clubs, leagues and associations have guidance throughout the process.

Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF): Game-changer for Guyana

Denmark striker Martin Braithwaite (far left) visited Guyana with the Danish Football Association

The Guyana Football Federation (GFF) is one of a few to have received support across all four pillars of Assist. This has seen a league development programme to support the nation's 10 top men's teams, and the launch of a new women's league.

Under-16 development tournaments took 20 of Guyana's best young players to Europe for the first time to compete against hosts Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lithuania and Montenegro, while grassroots players have benefited from two minivans to transport them from remote areas to training sessions.

Dedicated national association support has come from the Danish Football Association (DBU), which purchased equipment for the new women's league and took international striker Martin Braithwaite, who has Guyanese heritage, to the country for a special ambassadorial visit.

It is not just Guyana that has developed its football with help from Assist – almost all of CONCACAF's 41 member associations have benefited from our initiatives or events.

South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL): women's football moving forward

UEFA Assist is helping more women and girls in Venezuela take up the gameGetty Images

All over the world, football needs more women – on the pitch, in coaching roles, refereeing and administration.

Building on the success of UEFA's women's football strategy, Time for Action, Assist successfully piloted its Football for Women programme in Paraguay and Venezuela following a successful rollout in Asia.

In Venezuela, the initiative will eventually generate 10 nationwide grassroots festivals for girls, and has already created more girls' teams and promoted the existing women's league with branding toolkits, social media campaigns and digital marketing strategy guidance.

Thanks to the success so far, the programme will be extended to Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Uruguay this season.

Oceania Football Confederation (OFC): a new home for football

The OFC's new Home of Football building in Auckland

Two important projects have helped secure a bright future for Oceania's 11 member associations. Last month, the Assist team was present for the inauguration of the OFC's new headquarters, the Home of Football or Te Kahu o Kiwa, following significant financial support. The new facility in Auckland provides a new base for OFC staff, who are already enjoying their new home as well as two state-of-the-art synthetic pitches, which they believe will help to better prepare Oceania's teams for top-level competition.

Assist has also shared the experience and know-how of European football's educational arm, the UEFA Academy, to help launch OFC Learn – a new platform that provides critical e-learning support to more than 2,000 registered users, webinars for coach and referee development, and a registration platform for clubs, players and officials.