Lifelong learning crucial for budding Pro Licence coaches

The UEFA Pro Licence is more than a qualification, it’s a transformative experience for coaches who aspire to lead at the highest level.

For many students, acquiring their Pro Licence is a crucial step on the journey to becoming a head coach in the professional game, but it is not the final destination. Coaches must continue to learn throughout their career, adapting to new trends and developments within the game.

This is one of the messages of the UEFA Pro Licence Student Exchange programme, which brings student coaches together from different nations to share and compare ideas, learn from leadership experts and listen to some of the best in the business.

We staged the latest edition of the exchange at UEFA HQ in Switzerland this week, welcoming coaches and educators from five national associations – Czechia, Hungary, Malta, Poland and Slovakia – as well as a group of recently qualified female Pro Licence graduates, for three days of intense activity designed to challenge their thinking and introduce new leadership concepts.

As well as group discussions and technical analysis of UEFA competition action, the group also listened to insights from experienced coaches Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Martina Voss-Tecklenburg and Roberto Martínez.

Martina Voss-Tecklenburg shared her leadership philosophies

"Every opportunity like this is always so fantastic and valuable in many ways," said Martin Vlk, coach educator for the Czech FA.

"It’s an amazing chance for student coaches to have the exposure to top-level coaches, managers and people from different specialisations."

From playground to Premier League: Solskjær's coaching journey

Solskjær, who was most recently in charge at Beşiktaş following spells with Manchester United and Molde, offered the students candid insights from his career and discussed his pathway into coaching.

Ole Gunnar Solskjær reflected on his career to date

"I started coaching my friends and classmates when I was a kid, as a nine- or ten-year-old, and I used to play all these computer games, so I always had a coach in me," explained the Norwegian, who scored the winning goal in the 1999 UEFA Champions League final.

"When I was a player, I was studying the game, but I was studying for myself when I came onto the pitch, asking where's the weakness in my opposition and how can I hurt them?" he continued. "I got injured as a 30-year-old and was out for 18 months and wasn’t sure if I was going to play again, but I decided I need to stay in the game, and I needed to be coaching. I learnt so much from Sir Alex Ferguson, and when I had to retire, he offered me a coaching role within 20 minutes.

"Now I'm coaching my son's under-17s team – that matters as much to me as Manchester United, because I want to help the boys enjoy their football. Talking to the players is a very important part of management."

A gateway to growth and adaptability

The exchange programme also offers students the possibility of building vital relationships and networks with like-minded learners – less about new tactics and more about challenging existing mindsets and exchanging innovative ideas that contribute to a coach's lifelong learning.

"If I’ve learnt anything in this industry and in life, it's that it’s all about the network and the people you know,” said Vlk.

"Sometimes it's like we’re living in our own bubble, but when you have the opportunity to burst the bubble, meet people and see how things work in different parts of the world, it broadens your horizons and challenges your own perspectives.

Portugal coach Roberto Martínez shared insights with student coaches

"As a coach you have to stay hungry for new information, you have to reflect and you have to evolve," Vlk continued. "If in our national association we stop evolving, we’ll fall behind everybody else.

"For us coach educators, it's great to connect with others within our role and share best practices and experiences. We can see the structure of these UEFA events, so then we can take that into our own practice in the FA and try to replicate the ideas."

The V4 Initiative: Cross-border collaboration to raise the game

The success of the UEFA Pro Licence Student Exchange has inspired national associations to work together on a more regular basis.

Four of the five national associations attending this week's exchange programme have already launched their own initiative – V4 – which convenes coaching experts and educators from Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.

Martin Vlk addresses fellow Exchange Programme attendees

"We formed the V4 group and try to meet up twice per year to talk about coach education, what we can do better, and what we can learn from each other," Vlk explains.

The V4 initiative has evolved into international student exchanges based on the UEFA model, starting at the Pro Licence level with the intention to expand to elite youth and goalkeeper coaching courses. The collaboration initiative demonstrates how regional cooperation can amplify learning opportunities and foster innovation in coaching across Europe.