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PLC workshop prepares Match Officials for 2013/14 season

The Pro League Committee’s annual pre-season workshop began on Thursday 22nd August, running for a total of three days with proceedings set to conclude on Saturday. The workshop, held at the InterContinental Hotel in Dubai Festival City and designed by PLC to prepare all match officials and organisers for the season to come, has so far received a high level of attendance from representatives of PLC, professional clubs, match commissioners, media officers, access control officers, broadcasters and members of the press.

Thursday evening’s opening ceremony was attended by H.E. Abdullah Nasser Al Junaibi, Member of the Executive Office and Chairman of the PLC’s Technical Committee, along with the Pro League Committee’s Colin Smith, Chief Executive Officer, Anas Bukhash, Chief Communications Officer, Suhail Al Areefi, Chief Administration Officer, Michelle Chai, Director of Technical and Competitions, and guest speaker Keith Dalton, Match Operations Director at UEFA.

Colin Smith kicked off the workshop with a welcoming speech, in which he thanked attendees for their contribution to successfully delivering 420 professional matches last season, and looked ahead to raising the standards even higher in the 2013/14 campaign. H.E. Abdullah Al Junaibi continued the opening ceremony with a speech to welcome all workshop participants, and highlighted in particular the growth and development of professional football in the UAE over the past five years, standing us in good stead as we prepare to enter the inaugural Arabian Gulf League season.

To begin the content of the workshop in earnest, Michelle Chai, Director of Technical and Competitions at PLC delivered a detailed explanation of the roles and responsibilities of the various different Match Officials on a PLC match day, stressing the importance of implementing the Regulations set by the Pro League Committee in order to enhance the operational match day experience. Mohammed Basel, a member of PLC's Technical Department, continued with an assessment of various issues relating to fines that can be issued to clubs and players, quality control, and security relating to match organisation. Lieutenant Yahya Yousuf of Dubai Police then added a review of the services provided by Police on match days and the crucial link between the clubs and the Police, who will continue to work together in order to ensure safety and security at Arabian Gulf League matches throughout the coming season . 

Concluding the first day of the workshop, guest speaker Keith Dalton, Match Operations Director at UEFA, gave attendees a detailed look at safety and security factors to be considered when staging any football match. Dalton, who oversees the organisation of UEFA Champions League matches, used video footage to illustrate situations which match officials may face on match days, and what can be done to prevent or reduce match day incidents.

The second day of the workshop began with a marketing view, as CEO Colin Smith outlined some of the media and marketing progress made by PLC over the past season, including the introduction of downloadable smartphone apps, the increased use of social media, the improvement of television graphics and the launch of the League’s official Fantasy Football platform. Following the successful implementation of such initiatives, he confirmed improvements and upgrades to these platforms will continue throughout the coming Arabian Gulf League season. Smith noted that it is of vital importance that clubs adhere to the PLC’s Marketing Regulations, and highlighted some of the amendments and additions to the regulations for the coming season. Michelle Chai then followed with an in-depth explanation of rules and best practices regarding football kits and equipment, including the names and numbers displayed on the back of a player’s shirt.

Geoffrey Wouters, MD of Sport Exposure - the company responsible for the management of all LED advertising hoardings at clubs’ stadia – provided a detailed run through of everything related to the LED boards, from their maintenance to the need for clubs to continually keep updated with their LEDs. This was then followed by a thorough presentation by Taha Ezat, Senior Technical & Competitions Manager at the Pro League Committee, taking attendees through all new regulations added to the PLC handbook for the 2013/14 season, and the reasoning behind any additions and amendments.

Guest speaker Keith Dalton of UEFA returned to wrap up proceedings on the second day of the workshop, giving a detailed summary with video clips to illustrate how UEFA organise their Champions League matches. The session was concluded by opening the discussion to the floor and encouraging audience participation, with several further sessions followed by an assessment of knowledge to come on the third and final day of the workshop.