Al-Nasr Club receives a delegation of representatives of the world's elite clubs and FIFA officials

Al-Nasr Club received on Sunday evening, February 13th, a delegation of elite international clubs and officials from the International Football Association (FIFA), participating in the first edition of the FIFA Diploma for the Management of Professional Football Clubs, headed by Mr. Marco Rubio, the official of the Professional and Development Department in FIFA , and Mr. Sergio Santos, President of Brazilian Club Cruzeiro,Mr. Khaled Ahmed Refaat, member of  Board of Directors of the Egyptian Professional League, and a member of the Board of Directors of the former Zamalek club, Mr. Mohamed Khaled Gharaba, Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of Enppi Club of Egypt, and Ms. Ariana Criscioni, the former Paris Saint-Germain women’s goalkeeper and women’s football expert, and Mr. Eric Hauer, financial director of the German club Hamburg, and a number of club officials participating in the diploma, who were chosen from among 150 clubs worldwide.

The visiting delegation was received by Mr. Tawfiq Al-Zahrouni, CEO of Al-Nasr Football Company, in addition to a number of club officials.

At the beginning, the CEO welcomed the attendees, and gave them a brief explanation about the organizational structure of Al Nasr Club, its subsidiaries, the relationship of the club’s departments with its various companies, how things are run within the club, and how Al Nasr Club is one of the largest and most prestigious clubs in the United Arab Emirates And a pioneer in the field of sports investment, activating governance and developing young talents through the club’s football academies.

The history of the ancient Al Nasr Club and its role in football in the UAE since its founding in 1945 were also explained

The delegation toured the club, including Al Maktoum Stadium, the first team dressing rooms, the first football team’s training hall equipped with the latest sports equipment, the football academy, the club’s clinic and museum that displays the achievements and history of the ancient Al Nasr club. They also visited the club’s store and viewed the products available in it.

The members of the delegation expressed their happiness at visiting the headquarters of Al Nasr Club, the cradle of football in the Emirates, and their great admiration for the club and its facilities, and expressed their appreciation and thanks to the management of Al Nasr Club for their good reception.

At the end of the visit, the visitors made press statements expressing their happiness at visiting Al-Nasr Club, where Mr. Marco Rubio, FIFA Professional and Development Officer, said: “It was a beautiful experience and a wonderful reception. We are very happy that Al Nasr Club opened Its doors to us, I was able to see the history of the club, which is very important, in addition to this wonderful stadium, we are very grateful for what we saw here, we learned a lot, and it is a very important part of what we do in the FIFA Club Management Diploma, to understand how other clubs work and start sharing that information with other participants.

Sergio Santos, president of the Brazilian club Cruzeiro, thanked Al-Nasr Club for the welcome, and said: "Being here is a real pleasure, I liked the club, the buildings, and the colors, because we wear blue and white too, and you can be sure that you have another fan from Brazil here."

From her side, Ms. Ariana Criscioni, the former Paris Saint-Germain women’s goalkeeper and women’s football expert, confirmed her overwhelming joy at being at Al Maktoum Stadium, and said: “I am very happy to be in the UAE, and this wonderful stadium, I would like to return from retiring to play football. Here, the grass here is beautiful, the stands are perfect for women's football, I hope to get a chance to play football here.

In turn, Mr. Mohamed Khaled Gharaba, Vice-Chairman of the Egyptian Enppi Club, thanked Al Nasr Club, and said: “I thank Al Nasr Club for hosting. This is my first visit to Al Nasr Club. I was honored to be in this wonderful place, because all facilities and capabilities are available for success. Victory at the UAE level and the Asian level as well, and we thank them for hosting.”

Khaled Ahmed Refaat, a member of the Board of Directors of the Egyptian Professional League, and a former member of the Board of Directors of Zamalek expressed his thanks to the management of Al Nasr Club, where he said: “I am happy to be in Al Nasr Club, one of the oldest clubs in the Emirates and the Arab world. Great facilities, and a stadium at the highest level in the world. I thank the management of Al Nasr Club for their interest, and I wish them all success.”

This visit comes within the framework of the participation of Al-Nasr Club, represented by Mr. Saeed Al-Amri, the former CEO of Al-Nasr Football Company, in the first edition of the Club Management Diploma, launched by Mr. Gianni Infantino, President of the International Football Association “FIFA” for the first time at the level of clubs in the world, which comes in line with The changes taking place in football, this diploma aims to provide club managers and former international players with expertise related to the modern football industry and practices related to club management and decision-making in matters of marketing, finance, legal, governance, legal issues and stadium management.

Al-Nasr is the only Emirati club to participate in this diploma, and it was selected among 30 clubs out of more than 400 clubs around the world. It is worth noting that the tournament will witness the participation of some of the best and most prestigious clubs in the world, including Valencia of Spain, Benfica of Portugal and River Plate of Argentina, in addition to a group of former international players, most notably Italian Fabio Cannavaro, Portuguese Nuno Gomez and Swiss Philip Senderos. A selection of football experts in the world in all fields.