Looking back at the 9th EFDN Conference
Last year, on 7th and 8th of November, the 9th EFDN “CSR in European Football” Conference took place in Oslo, hosted by Valerenga Fotball.
Just as past conferences, the 9th EFDN Conference provided many opportunities to discuss and share best practices and knowledge in European Football and Development. Challenges and opportunities in the field of Community and Social Responsibility in football were discussed and inspiring presentations were given by club and foundation leaders and coordinators. Overall, 120 representatives from all over Europe attended the EFDN.
The Conference included a series of gatherings across the two days. Delegates included Everton in the Community, FC Barcelona Foundation, Chelsea FC, Aberdeen FC Community Trust, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, SV Werder Bremen, Shakhtar Donetsk, Paris Saint Germain Foundation, 1. FSV Main 05, Aston Villa, Athletic Club Bilbao, Scort Foundation, FARE, CAFE, KAA Gent, SK Brann, Club Brugge, Feyenoord Rotterdam, PSV, Vitesse Arnhem, NEC Nijmegen, FC Schalke 04, Ferencváros TC, Fulham FC and Legia Warsaw and many more.
A real desire to learn from others
Throughout the two days, new innovative programmes were presented that address topics as mental health, talent development, social inclusion, Women’s Football, accessibility, health and social inequalities, player involvement in CSR and programmes focusing on cultural dimensions.
“What brings me to the conference is a real desire to learn from others. To meet representatives of over 55 European clubs is a privilege in my view because there is more to bind us together than there is to separate us and when you get talking around the table about the good work that is going on in our charities and foundations it is very heart-warming to know that there is a real motivation and drive to use power of sport to improve the lives of many, many vulnerable people.” Philip Duffy, Everton in the Community
We were happy to experience a conference featuring fantastic speakers, inspiring study visits and many possibilities for shaping the future of CSR in football. One of the highlights of the 9th EFDN conference 
constituted the release of three CSR in Football Practitioner’s Guides, which were developed by EFDN. The Walking Football, One Goal for Education and Community and Social Responsibility Practitioner’s Guides are now available for download on the EFDN Online Learning Platform. The publications assemble best practices and ideas for football clubs and their foundations that assist in creating sustainable planning processes for community project objectives.
“I met very interesting people, very passionate people about football and how football can be a great tool to develop communities. It has been an amazing experience to be here.” Aisha Al Said Albella, FC Barcelona Foundation
Now, we are looking forward to the 10th EFDN Conference
The world of football for development is an exciting and expanding area in which to discuss and share best practices and knowledge. We hope that all attendees were able to use the conference to get to know as many colleagues as possible to exchange experiences and work collaboratively to innovate new ideas within CSR.
We are looking forward to holding our 10th EFDN Conference – #Morethanfootball – at Paris Saint Germain on 21st and 22nd of March 2018. We are sure that as our past conference, the 10th EFDN Conference will prove inspirational with many opportunities to connect with colleagues from the World of European Football.
