In autumn this year, a new European master's degree course in sports management is to be launched in Paris. The "Executive Master in European Sport Governance" course is directed at sports managers at national and international levels, and is designed to provide them with an understanding of the new challenges within sport and the regulatory measures that can be used to cope with these. Of the nine study modules that participants will be expected to complete during the 18-month course, one will be taught at the Johannes Gutenberg University (JGU) Mainz. The other modules are to be taught in Paris, London, Brussels, Barcelona, New York, and Lausanne and Nyon in Switzerland. "It is a considerable distinction for us to have been selected to contribute towards this important study program with our 'Ethics' module," explains Professor Holger Preuß of the JGU Institute of Sports Science. "We are already looking forward to the constructive discussions we will have on fairness, doping, corruption, discrimination, and social responsibilities in sport."
The new extra-occupational Executive Master in European Sport Governance (MESGO) program is targeted at managers of national and international sports associations, clubs, leagues, European institutions and governments, and other partners of sports organizations. In the nine modules or sessions, participants will deal with fundamental aspects of international sport, and with the topics sports organizations, sports management, legal regulations, financial considerations, sporting events, ethics in sports, the special characteristics of sports in North America, and questions relating to the future of sports management. It is not the sole purpose of the master's degree program to function merely as a course through which information and skills are imparted. Rather, it will serve the representatives and the managerial staff of sports organization as a platform for social and professional contact, and provide them with the opportunity for knowledge sharing and personal development.
The organizers of the "Ethics" module in Mainz will have the rare chance of addressing burning ethical issues relating to sports and inviting leading experts in the field to discuss them. "We could, for example, analyze in fine detail the legal aspects of recent cases of the use of performance-enhancing drugs and invite a representative of the World Anti-Doping Agency to debate them with us," suggests Professor Preuß with regard to a possible topic that could be dealt with in the module. ""We could also look at the subject of corruption in football and ask along a government expert in corruption."
In addition to Mainz University, the program is to be implemented by academic institutions in various European countries, including the Birkbeck Sports Business Centre at the University of London, the Centre de Droit et d' Economie du Sport at the University of Limoges, the Institut Nacional d' Educació Física de Catalunya at the University of Lleida, and Sciences Po Paris. The project is also being backed by international team sports organizations, such as UEFA, the European Handball Federation (EHF), the International Basketball Federation - Europe (FIBA Europe)l, and the European Rugby Association (FIRA-AER). The course program is to be initiated in Paris with a session to be held on 13 - 17 September 2010. Those interested have been able to submit applications for one of the 20 course places since 22 January.
Contact
Petra Giegerich
Phone: 06131 39 - 22369
Fax: 06131 39 - 24139
Email: idw(at)uni-mainz.de
