My Experience with the FIFA Fan Focus Group
I’m at FIFA headquarters in Zurich speaking with Dutch and AC Milan legend Marco Van Basten, and then it hits me: how did I get here? Well, let’s start from the beginning.
In August of this year FIFA put out a survey asking fans to provide feedback on important issues facing the organization and soccer in the coming years. More than 26,000 people from over 200 different nations responded! From that group, FIFA invited 50 fans to join them at FIFA headquarters in Zurich for a two-day Fan Focus Group. It just so happened that yours truly was one of the lucky ones selected, so I wanted to share my incredible experience with you.
The entire experience felt like a dream because of the incredible people that I met and the amazing discussions that we had amongst ourselves and with FIFA officials. I’ll take you through some of the highlights of the trip so you can get a taste of what I experienced… and maybe get a little jealous?
All 50 of the fans were put up in the same hotel, so we were able to meet each other prior to the official event beginning. Many of us took the opportunity to visit the new FIFA Museum, which was very impressive. The museum did a great job of showing of the history of the World Cup, while displaying some of the important artifacts that helped shape the game of soccer.
After being a tourist, we were all ready to get to work. The first day started off with a welcome and tour of FIFA headquarters, and then a special Q+A with Secretary General, Fatma Samoura. As someone who doesn’t come from a soccer background, Ms. Samoura really impressed me with her experience working in multi-cultural environments with the United Nations. She showed that the new leadership at FIFA was ready and willing to be open and transparent.
After a great morning, we were divided into smaller groups to discuss important issues related to football. I was placed in the women’s soccer group, and learned so much from my fellow delegates. One woman from India spoke about growing up in a country that doesn’t have a strong soccer presence, while another woman from Mexico spoke about the lack of respect given to women working in soccer. This made me realize how lucky we are in Canada to have such a strong women’s soccer program, and to have role models for young girls to look up to.
After an exciting first day, we began the second day with an open discussion on the future of the Men’s World Cup. For those of you who are not soccer fans, the current format sees 32 nations qualify for the World Cup. The proposed changes include an option for a 40 team World Cup and a 48 team World Cup. As you could imagine, all 50 of us had strong opinions on the matter! FIFA’s Chief Competitions and Events Officer did his best to answer all of our questions and oversee the discussion, and I was impressed with the level of knowledge shown by our fan group.
After that spirited discussion, we again broke off into groups to discuss another very important topic: fan engagement. I was placed in the group focusing on creating an online meeting place for soccer fans. The amazing ideas and strategies created in that group blew me away, and again showed how smart our group really was! We finished off the day by sharing our ideas with the rest of the group, before heading off to dinner and a night of celebration.
I can’t say enough about how amazing the entire FIFA Fan Focus Group experience was. I’m amazed that simply completing an online survey had me on my way to FIFA headquarters in Zurich! I’m eternally grateful for the opportunity to share my options and ideas, along with meeting the 49 other amazing fans from all parts of the world. This experience showed that soccer truly is the world’s game.
