Portal U de A

By: Andrea Carolina Vargas Malagón, journalist at the UdeA Communications Department 

Delegates from the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) and the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) visited UdeA, the only public institution in the country endorsed by CONMEBOL as a coach training center. More than 2,200 coaches have graduated since 2019. The visit was part of an agreement that will enable coaches trained in Colombia to work in Europe with recognized competencies. 

 
Delegates from CONMEBOL and UEFA visiting the UdeA. Photo: UdeA Communications Department / Alejandra Uribe F. 

On Thursday, September 11, Universidad de Antioquia welcomed delegates from CONMEBOL and UEFA as part of the collaboration agreement between the two confederations for coach training. The objective of the visit is to advance an agreement on the recognition of competencies that will allow coaches trained in Colombia to work in Europe. 

"At Universidad de Antioquia, we firmly believe that high-performance athletes must receive high-quality training. The fact that confederations choose UdeA as a center for coach training is a strategic decision, as they find one of the country's most trusted and credible universities here. This alliance will also allow us to promote research on the impact of sport on society," said John Jairo Arboleda Céspedes, UdeA’s president. 

UEFA delegate Frank Ludolph also highlighted the importance of this goal by stating, "Educating athletes and society is essential. Cooperation with CONMEBOL is key to advancing this goal, and UEFA will support this path." 

Since 2019, UdeA’s University Institute of Physical Education and Sport has been endorsed each year by CONMEBOL, in partnership with the Colombian Football Federation, as one of its training centers for football coaching licensing, thanks to its academic and research capabilities, in addition to its infrastructure of sport venues, laboratories, and information and communication technologies. 

"We are an institute with 57 years of experience and a distinctive curricular approach that focuses on high performance, starting with the undergraduate program in sports training. This commitment is also evident in the range of postgraduate programs —from specializations to master's and doctoral degrees— all of which include sports training tracks. We also have research groups and a significant presence in Antioquia: We operate in all nine subregions of the department, which allows us to reach the region and culturally recognize the significance of sport there," highlighted Sandra Maryori Pulido Quintero, director of the University Institute of Physical Education and Sport at Universidad de Antioquia. 

Since the University Institute of Physical Education and Sport received its first endorsement in 2019, more than 2,000 football coaches have graduated from the Universidad de Antioquia. Several now work for international clubs, which has strengthened the University’s position as a benchmark for coach training in the country. 

"The Football Licensing program has allowed us to develop a broad relationship, not only with the Colombian Football Federation, but also with figures who have shaped the sport's history and with clubs in Antioquia. In addition, we have welcomed coaches from other confederations: Panamanians, Venezuelans, Ecuadorians, Argentinians, and Colombians residing in places like the United States, Australia, and Costa Rica. All of this has positioned UdeA as an institution that welcomes and strengthens relationships between federations," explained José Fernando Londoño Mejía, coordinator of the Football Licensing program at UdeA’s University Institute of Physical Education and Sport. 

The official visit of the CONMEBOL and UEFA delegates also included Barranquilla and will continue in Cali, where other universities endorsed by CONMEBOL as training centers for football licenses are located. These are Institución Universitaria Ceipa and Universidad de San Buenaventura.