A host of names from the football world will descend on Wembley Stadium for Kick It Out’s annual Raise Your Game conference on Wednesday.
Brentford manager Mark Warburton and Barnet boss Martin Allen headline the event which aims to help guide and support aspiring individuals eager to break into the industry.
Warburton and Allen will be joined by Clarke Carlisle, a leading Kick It Out ambassador and former chair of the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA), who is hosting the conference supported by Investec, one of the world's leading specialist banks and asset managers.
Martin Allen will headline the event
Former Charlton Athletic midfielder Jason Euell and ex-Birmingham City and Derby County captain Michael Johnson are also supporting the event, which takes place from 9:30am-5pm.
Running for its fourth consecutive year, the conference has gained such a strong reputation for promoting opportunities in football that all 350 spaces were snapped up a month in advance.
Headed up by Troy Townsend, it will consist of keynote speeches, one:one mentoring sessions, specific workshops, exhibitions and a panel discussion to be hosted by BBC Sport’s Caroline Barker.
Since launching in 2010, the Project has helped a number of people gain full-time jobs with Alex Eckhout, the Premier League’s press and information executive, and Ravinder Bhandal, football development administrator at Birmingham County FA, obtaining their positions with Kick It Out’s support.
Following last year’s conference, Anthony Hassan obtained a role researching on Sports Interactive’s Football Manager series and Kam Uppal is managing West Bromwich Albion Academy Colts Under-12s. These are just a few of the success stories which have emanated from the Project.
This year's mentoring sessions give attendees the opportunity to seek expert advice in a range of areas across the game including management and coaching, grassroots and community, football administration, work of licensed agents and player services, media and communications, and refereeing.
The three specific workshops will see ITV Football’s Clive Tyldesley focusing on the art of commentating, Tony Taylor, lead academy coach at League Two side Burton Albion, looking at player development, empowerment and ownership, and Prozone giving an insight into performance analysis in sport.
Click here for a full list of the mentors and exhibitors who have confirmed there attendance for the conference so far with more due to be announced.
