Pakistani sportspersons often make headlines thanks to their on-field performances but here is one who aspires to do great things off-field rather than on it. Sabahat Hussain has specialised in sports management and legal skills from the internationally-recognised Instituto Superior de Derecho y Economía (ISDE) in Barcelona, Spain. The degree is designed for Business Administration, Law and Economics graduates and other professionals including former athletes to pursue a career in the sports field as managers. While earning his degree Hussain has also been lucky enough to have worked with FC Barcelona (Barça).

Q. What interested you about sports management and legal skills? 

A. I have been following sports since childhood. There are several passionate cricket and football fans in my family. We are sports fanatics. My dada [paternal grandfather] used to be in the organisation committee for international cricket matches in Karachi while my nana [maternal grandfather] was a sportsperson in Balochistan though he never got the chance to make a name for his country. And there was me who always dreamt of representing Pakistan in cricket. Sadly, that dream never came to fruition.

Professionals working behind the scenes do as much hard work as the ones on the field. Eos speaks to a Pakistani looking forward to working for sports from the sidelines

We moved to Australia where I played cricket at the regional level but club politics and injuries ended my playing career. I then turned my attention to completing my Bachelor of Commerce and doing a 9 to 5 professional job as an accountant. But then at 22 I decided to do sports management as I felt if I cannot be on the field then I would rather be off the field and still be close to my favourite sports. Also as there is lot of money in football I decided that Europe would be a better option to do this degree. I already had a Bachelor’s degree. Doing a Master’s made more sense to me and of course I also already had some professional sports experience. I then came across the Master in Sports Management and Legal Skills course at ISDE. This Master’s degree was in collaboration with FC Barcelona so it was a very attractive option. The degree also promised an internship at a major sports institution which was the winning factor for me as I would have got professional experience.

Q. How long does it take to specialise, and was the course very tough?

A. There is no specific specialisation in this degree, but a person can keep doing courses in their preferred field such as sports marketing, sports governance, etc. Also, there are a lot of conferences throughout the year focusing on a sports business field, which professionals can attend to enhance their skills, understanding and network. For my degree, you can say that specialisation is the internship the students must do as we will be doing it in our preferred field in the sports business. The internship has to be for at least four to six months and I believe it is really what allows us to acquire the skill set we need to work in the sports industry.

The course was not tough at all. I have always had exceptional organisational skills, so I found it easier compared to some of my peers. I try to stay on top of things and that makes it easier. I am a quick learner and as I had done some law courses in my B.Com I was able to do well in sports law courses, too. Also, I found the European style of teaching very laidback and relaxed compared to Pakistan or even Australia to an extent, which made my life easier. We used to have two assignments every week, so it was a bit demanding. But as all the assignments were obviously sports-related and we were all sports lovers, we enjoyed doing them.

Q. You mentioned that your degree was was in collaboration with FC Barcelona. How was the experience with Barca and the real team behind it?

A. That the degree was to be in collaboration with FC Barcelona was an initiative launched as part of the FCB Universitas Sport Innovation Hub project. FCB Universitas, Sport Innovation Hub is a project whose objective is projecting and sharing the knowledge generated at the club.

To understand the insights of FCB’s business, we were given three different stadium tours by the Barca staff members. We were greeted by the director of Barca innovation hub, Javier Sobriano, there. He explained to us the mission of this department and how Barca wants to be the centre of worldwide sporting knowledge and innovation.

Ferran Pastor, who works in the Institutional Relations and Protocol Department, explained to us how seating arrangements for Barcelona games are made, which are not only restricted to football but to the other professional sports FC Barcelona plays such as basketball, handball, futsal, roller hockey, etc.

Marcos Picallo, who is the relations manager of Barca Innovation Hub as well as co-director of my Master’s, explained to us the inside workings of the department and how they are trying to be number one in the field of innovation in football. He introduced us to his team and the office they occupy within Barca’s prestigious stadium Camp Nou.

Lastly, we were also taught at our university’s campus by professionals from two different departments of FC Barcelona. One of them was Jose Beltran who is the digital project manager for the club in terms of football only. It was an amazing class where we got to understand the digital marketing landscape of FCB and how technology has impacted the world of football recently. He also explained to us how digital marketing is becoming more important compared its traditional mediums. Our last academic class of Master’s was taught by the top three persons of the legal team of FCB. They described to us what legal matters arise for a sporting club.

It was an eye opener as to how much detail goes into the working of a sporting club and how the off-field people matter as much as the on-field people. We all now have lifelong connections with people who work at this esteemed club, which will be beneficial to us in our professional careers.

Q. Tell a bit about your work experience after getting your degree?

A. I am yet to start my internship, but I will be interning at Nike’s European HQ in Hilversum, Netherlands. The internship will start in August and will carry on for 12 months. I am very keen for it as it will help me learn about Nike’s global clubs and federation football business. I will be able to apply my education from both my Bachelor’s and Master’s in this internship. I will be working under the finance manager and working on financial reporting, budgeting and revenues/margin management for football clubs and federations. My passion for football will help me in this new adventure. I am eager to start.

Q. How can you help sports persons?

A. I will not be helping sportspersons directly unless I become an agent or someone with a high post in a major sporting organisation in the world. But I do hopefully plan to make it big one day where I am involved in the day-to-day running of an organisation and able to influence decisions for a sport.

The professionals working behind the scenes do as much hard work as the ones on the field, the players. It is because of the people working in the background that we get to see and adore sports but we are mostly ignorant of this fact. The fans flock to stadiums because of the effort put in by sports business people, too.

Q. Can Pakistan benefit from your kind of expertise? 

A. Yes. In Pakistan we tend to only focus on the common career paths such as medicine, accounting, engineering, etc., while we neglect the new career paths. The world is evolving now and there are new jobs being created in the world. Pakistan’s sporting organisations are on a decline except for maybe the Pakistan Cricket Board which is financially strong and has not been marred by politics as much as the other boards, federations and associations. The problem is that only those people are hired at top positions in these organisations who may have political links or a high status in the community. Even some ex-sportspersons are hired in these organisations who albeit have greater knowledge about the sport but running an organisation is a completely different thing. Therefore, Pakistan needs individuals to come forward who specialise in this field and can improve Pakistan as a sporting nation. We know Pakistan is blessed with raw talent and we need to nurture this. We need to focus on sports other than just cricket and bring back our glory days in field hockey and squash and improve in sports such as football and tennis as well. We need to work hard on improving the organisation of these sporting bodies and this can be done by hiring individuals who are passionate about the sport and understand its management technicalities.

Q. What do you hope to do now having acquired the degree?

A. I am taking it one step at a time, but I aspire to be highly successful in the sports industry. I once read a quote: “Work hard until you don’t need to introduce yourself.” That is what I want to achieve. By working at Nike, Inc., I will get the required platform to be successful in achieving my dream and it will help me in building a strong foundation for my career in this industry. One day I want to be directly involved in running a major sports club or organisation.

Q. Would you recommend people of Pakistan to aim for sports management and legal skills at ISDE, Barcelona? 

A. Yes absolutely. Not only at ISDE but studying a sports management degree in Europe or North America will be valuable nowadays as the sports industries are massive there. My suggestion is that people should aim for a sporting degree that offers an internship as it is not easy to get in the industry. The industry is still booming and requires more professionals, so it is the perfect time to be a part of it. With the development of the e-sports industry further, programmes specifically aiming at it are also being introduced now. Also, these degrees should be introduced in Pakistan.

The interviewer tweets @MarshaTayyab

Published in Dawn, EOS, July 1st, 2018