Dual Development: national pilot & start of European project

The KNVB is working hard to implement Dual Development. - Foto: KNVB Media

With Dual Development, the KNVB focuses on the optimal combination of top football and education or work. Since the start of the current season 24/25, the first pilot activities have started at several clubs and valuable insights have been gained. In addition, the European project Educating Dual Careers in Football (EDU-DC) has been officially launched, taking another step in the further professionalization of dual development within football.

Where do we stand with the national pilot?

The national pilot started in the spring of 2024 with an extensive Club Scan with self-assessments, interviews and focus groups with stakeholders in and around the pilot clubs FC Utrecht, FC Emmen and SC Cambuur. This Club Scan has been the foundation for advising and supporting the clubs on this theme and shaping the various pilot programs for the 2024/'25 season. Robin Pronk, Head of Training at FC Utrecht, says: ‘Dual development is an important part of training football players. Through participation in the pilot, we as FC Utrecht will get a lot of good insights, advice and suggestions on how to approach this within our Academy.’

The programs are now in full swing at the pilot clubs. In cooperation with the KNVB, hard work is being done to implement Dual Development. This has led to concrete steps:

• Awareness sessions for staff members, players and parents to emphasize the added value of a dual career.
• Training of staff members in growth mindset, self-regulation and conducting development and exit interviews, among other things.
• Collaboration with educational institutions and the business community to strengthen practical and substantive cooperation and offer customized learning and working paths.
• Individual coaching trajectories in which players are supported in their personal and athletic development. 

KNVB and ING invest in Dual Development Read more about the Dual Development Programme of the KNVB and ING here.

International follow-up: European project started

In addition to the national pilot, the European project Educating Dual Careers in Football (EDU-DC) was recently launched. This Erasmus+ project aims to further develop and scale up dual development within European men's and women's soccer. The duration of this project is from the beginning of 2025 to the summer of 2027.

The project includes:

• Participation of 20 pilot clubs from Europe to visualize the situation of Dual Development in European football among the federations and clubs.
• Monitoring of Dual Careers in elite football. With the deployment of questionnaires the satisfaction, motivation and experiences of players will be investigated.
• Development of innovative training programs for Dual Development coordinators, football coaches and support staff members.
• Implementation of pilot programs in the Netherlands (KNVB), Denmark (DBU), Bulgaria (BFU), Ireland (FAI) and Germany (DFB).
• Intervision between pilot clubs to share knowledge and experiences and learn from each other.
• Cooperation with the UEFA Academy to scale up and integrate training within national soccer associations.

The next step

With the insights from the pilot and the support of the European project, we are taking the next steps in the further professionalization of Dual Development. Our goal remains to help players find a healthy balance between football, study and work, preparing them optimally for both their sporting and social future. Ed Graper, Manager Football Development Top at the KNVB says: ‘It is the joint responsibility of federations and clubs to create an environment conducive to the success of dual development, looking beyond performance on the pitch.’

Want to know more? Contact Bart Goudswaard at bart.goudswaard@knvb.nl.