Happy birthday, UEFA Grow! Ten years of strategic support for national associations
Wednesday, October 22, 2025
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The programme has become a diverse and trusted collaboration tool for all 55 UEFA national associations, and we hear from beneficiaries in Andorra, Armenia, Belgium, Finland, Georgia, Italy and Romania about how Grow has helped them hit their strategic targets, build partnerships and develop the game in their communities.
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The UEFA Grow programme is one of European football's best-kept secrets, and a key element of our strategic support for national associations.
For the past ten years, Grow has helped every one of our 55 national associations to build stronger foundations for football development across a wide range of impact areas.
From helping federations define long-term visions to delivering tailored benchmarking tools and convening thought leaders, Grow has become a trusted partner in helping national associations shape the future of the game – from increased participation and commercial revenues to improved governance.
Former UEFA vice-president Karl-Erik Nilsson, who was president of the Swedish Football Association (SvFF) from 2012 to 2023, has firsthand experience of how Grow has driven the game forward.
"Strategic planning serves not only as a guiding framework in day-to-day operations but is also critically important for the long-term direction of any organisation, and UEFA Grow recognises the significance of this," Nilsson explained.
"National associations have been inspired to engage in strategic development efforts, and, based on thorough analyses of their current situations, have received professional support in developing strategic plans for the future," Nilsson continued. "Several have produced well-structured strategic governance documents, developed through inclusive processes and sound analysis.
"Moreover, there has been a notable openness and willingness to share ideas and experiences, contributing positively to the overall development of football across Europe. In other words, UEFA Grow has opened the doors to better strategic collaboration within European Football."
One of the programme's strengths has been its ability to evolve, and grow, with the needs of national associations.
Originally launched as a marketing support initiative, it now covers a wide range of areas and data points – including communications, commercial, finance, human resources – providing associations with a 360-degree tool which comes complete with regular expert advice, bespoke reports and dedicated knowledge exchange programmes.
UEFA Grow's three key areas of support
UEFA Grow's mission is threefold:
- Generate and gather knowledge
- Provide tailored services to national associations
- Bring people together through collaboration and events
This mission has guided the programme's evolution and impact, fostering a culture of trust and collaboration across the length and breadth of European football.
From vision to integration
Few people know UEFA Grow as well as Peter Willems, who helped shape the programme during its early days at UEFA and now leads the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) as CEO.
Reflecting on its origins, Willems said: "The central idea was that UEFA should support the national associations, not only by sharing expertise, but even more by enabling them to learn from each other – associations helping associations to grow."
The scheme soon expanded into a comprehensive development platform. "A key step was the collection and analysis of data from associations, allowing us to set benchmarks and identify best practices across Europe," Willems recalled.
Today, as RBFA CEO, he sees Grow as indispensable. "GROW remains a crucial pillar for the development of any national association. It enables learning from best practices, provides comparisons with industry and NA benchmarks, and offers valuable insights from UEFA experts," he explained. For Willems, the programme’s strength lies in bridging strategy and execution: "GROW combines the best of both worlds – strong strategic frameworks and practical guidance on how to bring them to life."
Football Association of Finland (SPL) general secretary Marco Casagrande is equally complimentary, having been involved in the pilot Grow project ten years ago.
"UEFA Grow came at a crucial moment for us," he said. "We were in the middle of strategic planning, and the pilot involvement offered us a professional, forward-looking dialogue that helped shape the future of Finnish football.
"We received comprehensive support – from strengthening our football community and public image to increasing commercial revenue and participant retention. The tailored workshops and hands-on collaboration made a real difference, and Grow also gave us the tools to demonstrate football’s societal value, helping us communicate its impact more effectively to stakeholders."
Partnerships prove valuable in Romania
The Romanian Football Federation (FRF) has embraced Grow as a cornerstone of its strategy, leveraging the programme’s tools and expertise to drive sustainable development across the country.
"UEFA Grow has been an essential support in implementing our long-term strategy," explains FRF president Răzvan Burleanu. "The programme’s analytical tools, consultancy, and know-how have helped the FRF base decisions on data, understand the needs of diverse audience segments, and tailor initiatives to boost participation and visibility nationwide.
One standout achievement has been in successfully attracting sponsors and partners. "A concrete example is represented by our commercial partnerships, through which we managed to expand the number of national youth competitions, supported by brands that share our values of education through sport,” said Burleanu. These collaborations have improved conditions for young players and raised the competitiveness of youth football.
A partnership with the Ministry of Education has also attracted more children to the game, thanks to the creation of 'Football Hour' in primary schools, promoting physical activity and making the game more accessible and inclusive.
"Grow plays a key role in football development by facilitating the exchange of best practices, professional training for specialists, and support for the promotion of local competitions and projects," said Burleanu.
"The programme is not just a set of tools – it is a genuine partner in strategic development. The most important thing is to view Grow not as a one-time project, but as a continuous process of organisational transformation based on analysis, collaboration, and innovation.”
Georgia's on-pitch example of Grow's value
Georgia made history when they qualified for UEFA EURO 2024, reaching a major tournament for the first time.
It was a crucial milestone on a journey that continues to see football go from strength to strength in the country, thanks in part to the Georgian Football Federation's (GFF) work alongside the UEFA Grow team.
The GFF sought to increase football's popularity in the country to help them identify more elite-level talent that could serve its international teams.
Between 2015 and 2021, the number of registered male football players in Georgia rose from 14,676 to 37,600, with the number of female players increasing more than tenfold.
That development owes much to the long-running support of the UEFA Grow team, which first helped the GFF align football development projects with its strategic priorities, before lending expertise in the creation of the federation’s 2022-26 strategy. That document laid out a roadmap for continued success and helped them maximise the impact of co-hosting the 2023 UEFA Under-21 EURO before qualifying for EURO 2024 less than 12 months later.
"The biggest lesson was understanding that all projects, including the Under-21 finals, should align with our overall goal of giving more Georgians the opportunity to access and play football," explained Tamara Kapanadze, GFF communications manager.
"Creating a strategy was the first step, and from the smallest to the largest detail, everything we do services that strategy. For a small federation, it’s important to feel UEFA’s support, and to achieve our goals, we have to keeping working together."
Building an expert community
As the Grow programme has continued to expand, it has contributed to the game's development in new ways, creating professional networks that allow national association staff to share insights and learn from each others' experiences.
One example is through the annual conferences that have become a highly valued date in the diary for associations' finance and human resources leaders, with the most recent event taking place in Rome in May.
The event provided bespoke sessions that tackled some of the emerging issues in football's unique business environment.
"We are managing very, very complex organisations and dealing with a range of stakeholders rarely found in other organisations," observed Marco Brunelli, general secretary of the Italian Football Association (FIGC). "Everything we do is only possible if we have the right people working with us."
Attendees were unanimous in finding value, with plenty to take away from both UEFA experts and their national association counterparts.
"Besides the knowledge sharing and practical information, I take with me the inspiration and perspective, which I will try to reflect in our new strategic plan," said Teresa Figueras, deputy general secretary at the Andorran Football Federation (FAF).
Hayk Makaryan, head of finance and accounting at the Football Federation of Armenia (FFA), added: "Irrespective of scale, I was greatly surprised to see many NAs facing broadly similar challenges, especially within our peer group."
Preparing for the future
UEFA Grow has helped the majority of Europe's national associations launch their own strategies, helping them to focus on important goals like attracting new players, improving the image of the game or increasing commercial revenues.
As we look to the future, national associations have more than ever to contend with, whether it is the need for developing sustainable infrastructure or how to responsibly adopt the use of artificial intelligence.
Whatever the topic, UEFA Grow has become a trusted, relevant and responsive partner, ensuring the next ten years promise even greater impact.