The first ECA (European Club Association) Workshop on Club Structure & Organisation was successively held last week at the Commerzbank Arena in Frankfurt, the same stadium Maccabi Tel Aviv played at this year in the group stage of the Europa League against Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt. The ECA, in its goal to serve all its member clubs, is increasingly focusing its attention on this core topic, and therefore decided to organise this first ECA Workshop on Club Structure & Organisation in light of the current realisation that today the structure and organisation of a football club is essential for its long-term sustainability and success. In fact, with the UEFA Financial Fair Play (FFP) Regulations fully in place, it is now almost an obligation for a football club to be structured and run in a sustainable way. Case studies from SL Benfica (Portugal), Club Brugge (Belgium) and The New Saints FC (Wales) were presented to the 60 participants from over 40 ECA Member Clubs representing no less than 30 different National Associations. Additionally, a panel discussion took place and owner representative Jack Angelides, representing Israel and Maccabi Tel Aviv Football Club, was joined by representatives of PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) and Ferencvarosi TC (Hungary) in a further exchange of views, knowledge and ideas on club structure and management.
