FIFA MASTER ALUMNI - WHERE ARE THEY NOW? - CHARLES FRÉMONT
Charles Frémont
Current Position: UEFA Senior Innovation Hub Manager
Year of graduation: 2015 (15th edition)
Nationality: Canadian
What does your current role involve?
I lead UEFA’s Innovation Hub, which has the mission to enable our organisation and the European football ecosystem (national football associations, clubs and leagues) to innovate in line with UEFA’s strategy. In practice, we enable them to define the strategic challenges that they face, build innovative solutions in partnership with start-ups, research institutes and other actors of the innovation world, and foster knowledge-sharing between them so they can learn from their various attempts at creating impactful products and services that contribute to the growth of football in Europe.
Among other things, I have led the creation of Champions Innovate, a programme organised by the UEFA Innovation Hub, in partnership with the host city of the Champions League final, commercial partners and start-ups which aim to co-create innovative solutions in line with a strategic priority area. Two successful editions have been organised so far, in London in 2024 (on the topic of sustainable events) and in Munich in 2025 (on the topic of access to sport and healthy lifestyles).
Which aspects of the FIFA Master course have helped you most in your career?
As I was starting my career in the sports industry, taking part in the FIFA Master allowed me to enrich my network and become more appealing to potential employers in the industry.
However, today, my answer would be entirely different. The long-term benefits of doing the course are way broader and meaningful than being strictly limited to networks. To study and live with thirty other experienced individuals, coming from twenty-seven different countries, with diverse professional backgrounds, was truly a life-changing experience. It taught me to be open to new ideas and perspectives, to make an effort to understand our differences instead of judging them, to find alignment on common values instead of rejecting ideas that seem opposed to mine from the get-go.
I can see first-hand in my work today as an innovation professional that diversity and collaboration are the key success factors to any new initiative. You need to confront your ideas to various different perspectives, reflect on your original plans based on user-feedback and to partner with stakeholders who you may not have previously worked with. My experience on the FIFA Master taught me just that and, without knowing it then, made me acquire the skills that are at the core of who I became as an innovation expert in this industry.
What advice would you give to future students on the course?
My advice to future students is simple. Be open to be challenged about your career plans. The people who end up having the most successful careers after taking part on the FIFA Master are the ones who did not have a set career plan coming in. I came in as a lawyer from Canada who didn’t know much about football. My dream was to work in the bidding department at the International Olympic Committee because I was a huge fan of the Olympics and that I was passionate at analysing how cities get transformed by hosting them. I now lead the innovation hub of UEFA – which is far from my original ambition. I am proud of where I’m at in my career, not because of the prestige of the organisation I work for, but because my role is a perfect fit for who I am – a curious and open man who gets to work every day on contributing to building the future of the industry that I love.
FIFA Master - International Master in Management, Law and Humanities of Sport, ranked Europe's No.1 course a record 12 times by SportBusiness.
FIFA Master - 25 years of Excellence in Sport Business Education - organised by CIES in partnership with De Montfort University (UK), SDA Bocconi School of Management (Italy) and the University of Neuchâtel (Switzerland)
