Connecting Europe with Concacaf to boost elite youth football

Coinciding with International Youth Day, the annual Concacaf youth football summit aims to strengthen the development of elite young players by giving local associations an opportunity to learn best practices and new strategies, from across the region and beyond.

The summit’s fourth edition, held on the Caribbean island of Curaçao at the start of September, was no exception with the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA), the English Football Association (FA), the German Football Association (DFB) and the Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) drawing on UEFA funding to run workshops on ‘Bridging Potential and Performance Pathways to Excellence’.

Every season, UEFA member associations are eligible for up to €35,000 each through the UEFA Together programme to partner with development projects run by members of our five sister confederations. For the Concacaf Youth Summit, the DFB, FA, KNVB and RBFA agreed to pool their individual grants to jointly support the event.

Over three days, representatives from these four European associations worked with colleagues from all 41 Concacaf members to explore case studies on developing women’s football, talent identification, high-performance environments and innovation driven by technology and data.

We asked attendees to give their take on the summit’s latest successful edition.

Why is the summit so valuable for both sides of the Atlantic?

"This event showed how much can be achieved when our associations and Concacaf work side by side. Through the UEFA Together programme, we were able to support this summit by building connections off the pitch and encouraging knowledge exchange across our associations.”
Zoran Lakovic, UEFA Deputy GS International Affairs

"It’s a powerful example of what can be achieved when football organisations work together with a shared purpose. By collaborating with UEFA and our European colleagues, we created a platform for the meaningful exchange of ideas, with a strong focus on developing sustainable pathways for young players."
Jason Roberts, Concacaf Chief Football Development Officer

Representatives from Belgium, England, Germany and the Netherlands shared best practices

What were the key takeaways for Concacaf associations?

"I left the summit full of idea, stories, and good examples that I can perhaps implement in my country, with the feeling that this will bear many fruits in the future."
Reinaldo Lima, Sub-director of Technical Development, Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Asociación, AC

"It was encouraging to connect with fellow female coaches at the conference and realise that many of the challenges we face are shared experiences across the profession."
Mackiesh Taylor Jones, Head Coach, US Virgin Islands Under-14 girls national team

"This partnership reinforces our commitment to ensuring that the next generation across our region has the tools, opportunities, and inspiration to reach their full potential."
Jason Roberts, Concacaf Chief Football Development Officer

The growth of women’s football, talent identification, high-performance environments and innovation were on the agenda

The summit’s agenda put a strong emphasis on increasing access to football, and creating leadership opportunities for women and girls. How will lessons learned accelerate the growth and sustainability of the game across the region?

"It was very beneficial. It has helped to provide us with a path to follow so that we can develop football in general and women’s football specifically."
Sonia Matute, Women’s Development Technical Coordinator, Honduras (FENAFUTH)

"I am eager to put new insights into action—empowering the next generation of female players in the Virgin Islands to excel both on and off the field."
Mackiesh Taylor Jones, Head Coach, US Virgin Islands Under-14 girls national team

"The things I heard and saw, especially from the speakers, will allow me to bring back and implement certain approaches in my federation."
Catherine Kabel, Women’s Technical Development Officer, Ligue de Football de la Guyane

Representatives from all 41 Concacaf member associations were in attendance

For the first time, European associations led the knowledge exchange sessions. What were the benefits of this new approach?

"It was a unique opportunity not only to share Belgium’s vision on talent identification and development, but also to learn from the participants’ experiences. What stood out most was their eagerness to learn and the belief that each federation can shape the development of talented players through dedicated programmes."
Bob Browaeys, regional technical director elite sport and national head coach (Under-17), RBFA

"It was a privilege to exchange views and experiences on a wide range of topics, all of us benefitting from the diversity of the group. I was especially pleased to be working with over 50 women from the region, all representing their national association."
Lisa Savage, Women’s national coach developer, English FA

"The summit is important to know where we stand in our confederation and what UEFA is doing. It’s also very important to reconnect with some of our fellow countries."
Tracey Kevins, Head of Development Teams, US Soccer Federation

"UEFA demonstrated a vivid understanding of modern trends. Significantly, they highlighted key elements that we should privatise to foster the growth and development of our programmes."
Wendell Downswell, technical director of Jamaica’s national youth team