How do I become a sports club manager?

Contents

Definition

What does a sports manager do?

The job of sports manager involves managing all aspects of a club or federation. The sports manager is just as much involved in the administrative side of the business as in promoting the club. Relations with commercial partners are also an important part of the job. It’s a job that requires a great deal of adaptability, given the many and varied tasks involved in sports management.

Depending on the size of the organisation, the duties of the post may vary. Not all clubs have the same scope, and consequently the same level of responsibility for the manager. What all clubs have in common, however, is the obligation to achieve satisfactory sporting results.

Among his many duties, the sports manager must ensure coordination between the technical team and all the other professions working within the structure. Whether they are in administration, the medical corps, maintenance or directly from the sports staff, he supervises and coordinates every action with the aim of meeting the objectives set beforehand. He defines operational and economic strategies, ensuring the long-term future of the structure.

Skills

What qualities are expected of a sports manager?

When faced with a position with so many responsibilities, the qualities expected are many and go beyond the simple function of supervisor.

First and foremost, sports managers need to be diplomats who know how to bring people together. As a team leader, you need to be able to communicate calmly and effectively. They need to know how to make themselves heard and respected, without dividing. The sports manager is a true leader of men who must impose a certain natural authority.

The multiplicity of tasks requires great rigour and an acute sense of organisation. To ensure that nothing is left to chance, the manager must prioritise tasks and know how to delegate when necessary, so as never to be overwhelmed. Establishing plans and strategies is the key to coordinating all actions and creating an overall sense of achievement. The sports manager must have a clear idea of the direction everyone should take in order to steer the team towards success.

To prevent any conflicts or other complications, sports managers need to have relatively advanced legal skills. Whether they are concerned with signing contracts or simply managing human resources, their knowledge in this field should be able to promote the proper development of the structure as well as the overall unity of the club. Negotiations with sportsmen and women or with other trade bodies are conducted solely through him. The legal requirements for all administrative procedures should hold no secrets for him.

Course

How do you become a sports club manager?

If you’re working on a project with a high level of responsibility in the world of sport, it’s worth looking into higher education courses at specialist schools.

Business schools offer both generalist and specialist courses to give students a solid grounding in areas that complement sport: communication, marketing, law, finance and accounting. This course of study encourages students to assimilate a wide range of sectors, which is essential for managing organisations.

When students embark on a Bachelor’s or Licence programme, they are guaranteed direct immersion through work placements or sandwich courses, in France or abroad. This generalist foundation is not solely focused on management. It allows students to choose between several career paths. It’s a solid and diversified background, essential if you want to launch yourself into an ambitious field.

If they wish to continue their specialisation, they can then take a Masters at a business school. A number of schools offer the opportunity to study the sports industry in all its aspects and to review the different professions involved. This gives students the opportunity to meet professionals in the sector and understand all its mechanisms. The master’s degree seems to be the essential element for completing a course leading to a position of high responsibility.

INSEEC offers several specialisations in the field of sport. These are offered on several campuses in several French cities and abroad. Courses are offered in cities such as Lyon, Paris, Chambéry, Rennes and Bordeaux.

Among the specialised courses offered by INSEEC are three available for study:

The Master of Science in Sports Marketing & Management in Paris, Bordeaux, Rennes, Chambéry and Lyon (Bac+5).
Bachelor Sport Business (Bac+3) ;
Master of Science in Marketing & Management of Outdoor Sport in Chambéry (Bac+5) ;

Remuneration

How much does a sports manager earn?

If there’s one job where pay depends on the size of the organisation, it’s that of sports manager. At the start of your career, in a medium-sized or small club, your salary will vary between €25,000 and €35,000 gross per year. Obviously, as the club grows or if you work in a much larger structure, this sum can more than double or even triple. The range of salaries in the sports sector is particularly wide compared with other professions.

Find out more about pay in sport.

Course

How do I become a player agent?

What qualities do you need to be a player agent?

The job of a player agent (whether managing football, rugby or any other sport) involves acting as a link between the club and the sports professional. Although strictly regulated by the French Sports Code, the democratisation of sporting competitions has given this job a new lease of life. Another factor has been the rise of mainstream sport among the general public, particularly on television and pay-TV channels. A sports agent’s many roles mean that he or she is particularly involved in his or her duties, which are as complementary as they are far-reaching. It’s a multi-hatted role that demands a great deal of resilience and sacrifice. There are currently around 350 professional agents in France. Proportionally, that’s not a lot. Although ambitious and attractive if successful, this job involves many difficulties before achieving the desired goal.

As a sports agent, you need to master a wide range of areas to be effective in all aspects of the job. As a leader, you need to be a good negotiator. But they also need to master many other areas:

Public relations
Sports facilities
Marketing
taxation
right
foreign languages

Rigour is the watchword for success in this position. His teaching skills and communication know-how give him great power when it comes to communicating with teams. His address book is an asset to the success of his project, and his knowledge of sporting rules is essential to mastering all the nuances of the discipline.

How do I become a player agent?

The minimum level for this job is a 3-year Bachelor’s degree. Among the establishments specialising in sport, INSEEC offers a wide range of courses in sports management.

To this must be added the requirement to obtain accreditation, by taking a general test based on :

sports law
technical knowledge of the discipline in which you want to develop
comprehensive legal knowledge

This Licence is offered by a number of schools in France, including EAJF (Ecole des Agents de Joueurs de Football) and WST (Worldwide Sport Training). Out of 500 students who apply each year, only 10% pass. There is one exception. Since 2011, a change in the law has enabled lawyers to work as sports agents without having to hold a licence. However, their scope of action is less extensive than that of a professional player’s agent.

Jobs

What other careers are there in sports management?

Sports coach

The aim of a sports coach is to optimise the performance of players in a specific discipline. They work for a sports federation or club, using their experience to establish an appropriate teaching method. He or she is responsible for developing targeted training programmes for each player, based on observations made during training sessions. He identifies each player’s strengths and weaknesses and offers technical, mental and physical support to maximise their chances of success.

To reach this position, he will need to complete 3 years of a Bachelor’s degree in Staps with a specialisation in sports coaching, followed by two years of a Master’s degree with a specialisation in coaching.

Personal coach

Personal coaches have been on the rise in recent years. They have a wide range of missions to help people achieve personal fulfilment and well-being. Whether they focus on muscle strengthening, psychological support or weight loss, sports coaches are there to draw up a personalised programme.

Their role is to coach and support individuals towards achieving the goals they have set together. They may teach in a centre or at home, in group or individual sessions. Their work is carried out in partnership with the students, whose motivation and commitment are the key to the success of the programme.

You need a Youth, Popular Education and Sport certificate to work in this position, as well as a Staps degree.

Technical sports director

Under the authority of the general management, the sports technical director generally works as part of a team. They carry on their shoulders the responsibility for the policy of their club or federation. They are observed and judged on every decision they make, and are also under the thumb of the results generated by their team. As a result, they are under a great deal of pressure in all the areas for which they are responsible.

The programme and budget he draws up are decided jointly with the federation. He is responsible for negotiating players’ contracts, keeps an eye out for potential new recruits, decides on the constitution of a team and also takes care of logistical and administrative matters. His omnipresence gives him a vital role within the club.

Offers

Does INSEEC offer courses in sports management?

With the popularisation of sport through the mainstream media, the sporting environment has become a particularly buoyant market. Today, it is the representative of a certain economic dynamism, highlighted by the starification of sportsmen and women, the explosion of television rights and the continuous growth of sports structures. That’s why over the last few years, the world of sport has generated a large number of vocations in a wide variety of fields.

INSEEC understands this and offers a range of courses related to the sports sector, accompanied by professionals from the sector. The programmes cover all areas of activity and offer constant contact with the main players in the sector, to provide a total immersion experience.

INSEEC sport programmes range from Bachelor’s toMaster’s degrees (Bac +5). There are three main teaching categories:

Governance of sport and sports organisations
Trade, distribution and retail of sports equipment
sports marketing and events

As a result, students receive a wide range of complementary teaching in these three main areas. The wide range of courses makes it easier to choose a career path in sport.

For more information or to apply, click here: Application for asports specialisation at INSEEC.

And if you have any other questions, go to our Frequently Asked Questions page .