São Paulo – This week, the Union of Professional Football Coaches of the State of São Paulo (Sitrefesp, in the Portuguese acronym) is going to promote the 20th edition of the International Course for Football Coaches. From May 23rd to 27th, students will attend classes on tactical schemes, coaching methodology, referee updating, theory and practice of goalkeeper training, technical training, physical conditioning, coordination of younger players department and physiotherapy.
The Sitrefesp, however, does not promote the course by itself. The Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Relations is taking part in the event for the fifth time by bringing in coaches from other countries. The São Paulo State Football Federation (FPF) is also involved.
According to the Sitrefesp director and technical coordinator, José Nogueira Júnior, the course promoted by the union is an opportunity for professionals to keep themselves up to date. “It is like an extension course. It is not meant to form new coaches, it is meant for people already working in the field. It is a recycling process, aimed at the perfecting of professionals,” he claims. According to Nogueira Jr., Brazilian coaches also attend courses and events out of the country and learn from them.
“We also learn abroad, but when you check out the work of professionals from the Southern Cone (Brazil, Argentina, Chile), you realize that the methodology, the teaching and the coaching are different from those of other places,” says Nogueira, who has coached the national teams of Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone and the Saudi team Al-Ahli. The classes will take place at the Museum of Football, in the Pacaembu neighbourhood, and at Nacional Atlético Clube, in Barra Funda, both in the West Side of São Paulo.
This year’s edition will be attended by African (Tanzania, Mauritius Island and Botswana) and Asian countries. Asian countries will include India, Pakistan, East Timor, Brunei, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Thailand and Vietnam. Some of these nations will attend the Latin America – East Asia Cooperation Forum (Focalal). The foreign coaches will come to Brazil by invitation of the Brazilian foreign ministry (Itamaraty).
According to Nogueira, Iran will also participate, but on its own, not as a guest of the ministry. Last year’s edition also offered training to referees and was attended by one person from Palestine.
The Itamaraty’s general coordinator for sports exchange and cooperation, Vera Cintia Alvarez, claims that taking part in this event is a way of helping emerging countries and projecting Brazil abroad. “This means making football into our visiting card and is a way of having diplomacy work for the development of these countries, because sports are crucial to development,” she claims.
Botswana, for instance, will participate in this edition of the event with a woman football coach. Vera points out that this exception also works in favour of Brazil. “It shows our respect for human rights and women’s rights,” she says.
This is the first stage of the course. Two others should be held in July and November. The opening class will be taught by the FPF chairman, Marco Polo del Nero. Coaches at the leading Brazilian teams will give lectures to the students. The guests will include coach Tite, of Corinthians, Estevam Soares, who coached São Bernardo in the last São Paulo Championship, and the Palmeiras goalkeeper coach, Antonio Carlos Pracidelli. The event will be wrapped up by a lecture from the coach of Palmeiras, Luiz Felipe Scolari. Enrolment is already closed. At the end of the course, the coaches will earn a certificate.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
