FIFA MASTER ALUMNI - WHERE ARE THEY NOW? - DEBOLA ADEBANJO
Debola Adebanjo
Current position: FIFPRO Campaign and Internal Communications Manager.
Year of Graduation: 2022 (22nd edition)
Nationality: Nigerian
What does your current role involve?
I work with FIFPRO, the global union for football players worldwide as the organization’s Campaign and Internal Communications manager. I coordinate the strategic dissemination of the different projects carried out by the wider team at FIFPRO to relevant stakeholders, implementing these strategies on both digital and traditional channels and ensuring that they maintain the primary objective of centering the voice and needs of football players. Also important is my role in ensuring these strategies are conveyed to our members through various internal communications channels to enable them to carry out their work for players in different regions of the world efficiently. An active day in my life at work will see me managing production shoots, interviews and filming involving campaigns, and subsequently producing bespoke visual and digital storytelling content. Other days are spent in liaison with colleagues, experts, stakeholders, football players and FIFPRO members, guiding them through communication-led strategies to progress initiatives across the organization.
Which aspects of the FIFA Master course have helped you most in your career?
I have found every aspect of the FIFA Master invaluable since graduating. The modules in Leicester, Milan and Neuchâtel gave me knowledge and an accelerated understanding of the global sports industry which made stepping into my next role much smoother. As a result of gaining experience of how different federations, clubs, player unions and organizations work thanks to the field visits undertaken during my FIFA Master studies, I not only got to understand the everyday language of the football industry but also met industry experts who I later re-acquainted with after graduation. This gave me a head start in carrying out responsibilities in my current role. Furthermore, it is reassuring to be a part of our brilliant network of course alumni, knowing we share the same professional values and gaining some quality friendships along the way.
What advice would you give to future students on the course?
I would advise future students to stay present in the idea that there is a gem waiting to be discovered in every academic lecture, industry guest speaker session, field visit, and interaction you have on the programme – and especially with the unfamiliar and what might initially appear to be uninteresting. Aim to leave genuine impressions where necessary as these interactions come around to present you with something valuable somewhere down the line, and more importantly, the FIFA Master is an investment that rewards you sooner than later, so relax, enjoy the process and watch it all fall into place as you build your career after graduation.
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).
