Rabat – On Monday, the FIFA office in Rabat convened sports officials and representatives from Africa and Europe to discuss knowledge sharing and learning experiences at the FIFA Knowledge Exchange Workshop.
The event brought together 10 member associations, including Morocco, Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, Cabo Verde, as well as members from Europe, such as Turkiye, Iceland, Switzerland, Poland, and Croatia.
The workshop served as a platform for sports officials to discuss national team development. It covered presentations, panel discussions, and site visits – including a tour of Morocco’s Mohammed VI National Technical Center.
During the event, participants shared experiences, best practices, and strategic insights, including those from Morocco’s Football Federation (FRMF).
The discussions focused on best practices and strategic insights on national team development, hosting international football events, and managing high-performance training centres.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino welcomed expats from Africa and Europe, describing the FIFA office in Rabat as beautiful.
The FIFA president emphasized how football is a “global game” that throws up unique challenges, stressing the importance of keeping an open mind and open spirit as key to keeping the game forward.
He also commended Morocco for hosting the “fantastic” AFCON, describing the world-class venues the country deployed as “modern stadiums.”
He said, “It made me very proud to see first-hand the progress in African football infrastructure and experience the wonderful hospitality.”
Stipe Pletikosa, Croatian Football Federation Technical Director echoed the same sentiment, describing the workshop as a “great initiative.”
He explained: “These knowledge exchanges help us build bridges, including football bridges, to make the game more successful and truly global. It is extremely valuable to hear the experiences of other member associations, especially on different topics, and equally important is the bonding we are creating together.”
Robert Breiter, the General Secretary of the Swiss Football Federation, also commended the exchange of ideas and knowledge, especially about technical centers.
“We had an exchange, for example, about national technical centres, and here in Switzerland we are in the process of building one; so it’s very interesting to listen to federations that are also going through the same process or those that have already completed theirs,” Breiter detailed.
He also recalled the visit to the National Technical Centre at the Mohammed VI Complex of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, describing it as a magnificent showcase.
“That too gives us new ideas and opens up perspectives,” Breiter concluded.
