Johan Cruyff Institute explains the importance of educating athletes at the International Player Care Conference

The director of Johan Cruyff Institute, Mariël Koerhuis, has been invited to discuss the role of education in a panel session with ex-footballers Sonny Pike and Ryan Smith

The sports industry met today at the Corinthia Hotel in London on the occasion of the International Player Care Conference organized by Premier Sports Network. It is a day of talks focusing on athletes, their environment and all those aspects that influence their development. Johan Cruyff Institute has spent 20 years dedicated to the academic education of athletes, and its director, Mariël Koerhuis, spoke about its experience and training model in a panel session discussion with the British ex-football players Sonny Pike and Ryan Smith, two talents that stood out for their precociousness at Ajax and Arsenal, respectively.

The education of athletes should not be a dilemma whatever the age at which it is undertaken. Combining sport and studies is perfectly possible, but each activity must be given the importance and space it requires. Johan Cruyff Institute network is 100% sports oriented and accompanies athletes in their training from adolescence, through the Johan Cruyff College and Johan Cruyff Academy, to more advanced ages with a varied offer of master’s and postgraduate programs for active athletes and those who are in the last phase of their career, or have already retired, and want to continue linked to sport from the management side of things.

Johan Cruyff always defended athletes’ ability to lead, with proper training, institutions and sports organizations: “We do not penalize our athletes or managers for not being able to study as many hours as other people who do not train or aren’t still working. We welcome and teach them because I firmly believe that there is no one better to defend the interests of sport than those with the heart of an athlete”, said Johan.

That continues to be the mission of Johan Cruyff Institute: train athletes and contribute to the professionalization of the sector with tailor-made programs for clubs and sports organizations that are committed to training their players and staff or to ensuring their own management is more professional and efficient, thereby enabling them to adapt to a constantly evolving environment.