UEFA PRO Diploma

Four pillars of the UEFA Pro Diploma 

A UEFA Pro licence holder will have a clear understanding of player and team development and coaching at professional level, and must demonstrate competence in the following four areas:

The professional coach

• Working as the head coach of a professional club’s first team or, in some cases, as a member of the coaching staff at professional level
• Working closely with and leading the coaching and multidisciplinary staff
• Being involved in developing and applying a club’s technical policy and philosophy
• Ensuring the right balance between the players’ professional and private lives
• Working with professional players from different cultural backgrounds, of different ages and experience, e.g. young talented players, experienced players, star players
• Dealing with all factors affecting the team’s performance: media, players’ agents, fans, scouts, sports ethics, etc
• Being accountable to the club’s management: club owner, club board, technical director, etc
• Contributing to the club’s overall policy

The player and team

• -Planning, executing and supporting individual player development, including players’ own objectives, and complying with the club’s technical policy
• Giving direction and supporting players, enabling them to take responsibility for their individual development and involving them in the process (stimulating self-regulation)
• Working on the team’s development in cooperation with all support staff, i.e. technical, medical and performance staff
• Managing all aspects of the team’s performance
• Creating a winning team and a high-performance culture in a positive environment at professional level

The training environment

• Preparing and conducting individual and team training sessions at professional level
• Working with individual players and the team and understanding how the training session design can affect performance at professional level
• Designing game-oriented (team tactical) training sessions in terms of opponents, pressure and intensity
• Planning, delivering and reviewing training sessions in accordance with the club’s coaching philosophy
• Designing a seasonal team-tactical and physical plan in accordance with the competition schedule and the club’s objectives
• Embracing and adopting an interdisciplinary approach to physical and mental preparation and development, wherever possible in cooperation with other members of the multi-disciplinary team, e.g. performance analysts, fitness coaches, sports scientists, medical and other performance staff

The match

• Preparing a team for and coaching them during matches at professional level
• Using the game to develop each player and the team, but also to create a winning team and a high-performance culture
• Preparing the match plan (with the staff) in accordance with the club’s playing philosophy, taking the opponent team into account
• Analysing matches (with the staff) as an evaluation and learning tool for individual players and the team as a whole.

Mode of Assessment

Modular Tasks are given during each course module. These tasks take the form of individual, or group presentations, match or training-session observations with tutor feedback is given throughout.

A Formative Task (Professional Portfolio including training sessions) needs to be presented at the end of the course. A tutor will be provided to follow the candidates throughout the whole process.

Work-placement and practical sessions in the coach’s own club environment are also part of the assessment.