Speaker update for the 16th EFDN Conference in Breda

Speaker update for the 16th EFDN Conference in Breda

The European Football for Development Network (EFDN) will host its 16th EFDN ‘Purpose and Sustainability’ Conference as a hybrid event from 8-10 November 2021 in the Rat Verlegh Stadium of NAC Breda, the Netherlands. So far, more than 150 representatives from 50 different football clubs, leagues, and national football associations of 17 European countries subscribed for the congress.

This conference is the perfect platform for organisations of all shapes and sizes to share ideas and develop new concepts. EFDN is excited to meet its members and partners again in person at the largest gathering of Community and Social Responsibility (CSR) experts in European professional football. Participants at the 16th EFDN Conference will discuss challenges occasioned by COVID-19 and share best practices on CSR strategies, fundraising, sustainability, women’s football, anti-discrimination, social inclusion, online safeguarding, physical activity and STEM education. It will be an excellent occasion for your organisation to join these experts and broaden your network on CSR in football.

This news article will give you an impression of some more of the knowledgeable and competent speakers in the fields of the Opening of the Conference, the CSR Strategy of NAC Breda, EFDN STEM, and Playing for Success at NAC Breda we have contacted to share their expertise with you:

Matthijs Manders – NAC Breda

Matthijs Manders, General Manager at NAC Breda, is the next confirmed speaker at our 16th EFDN Conference in Breda on 9 & 10 November 2021. 

Mattijs Manders is General Manager at NAC Breda where he started in June 2020. In this role he is responsible for the strategic and operational tasks to run this club. NAC Breda, also known as “The Pearl of the South” has been well established in the Dutch football industry and is part of the history, present and the future of Dutch football. He has a wide range of experience in football as he has been General manager of ADO Den Haag and Managing Directo at the Dutch Eredivisie CV, representing all professional football clubs in the highest division of the Netherlands. He studied Economics at The Hague College / TH Rijswijk, Business Economics at the Open University and he did a management course at the University of Oxford. 

Matthijs Manders will welcome all participants of the 16th EFDN Conference on behalf of NAC Breda.

Niels Quispel – NAC Breda

Niels Quispel, CSR Manager at NAC Breda, is the next confirmed speaker at our 16th EFDN Conference in Breda on 9 & 10 November 2021.

Niels Quispel is CSR Manager and responsible for the social policy of football club NAC Breda. Under the name NAC Maatschappelijk they bring people, organisations and initiatives together. Niels believes that football is more than a game and tries to utilise the power of the brand NAC Breda to improve the community of Breda and its surroundings.  

Niels will present the CSR Strategy of NAC Breda because NAC Breda is more than football. The club is anchored in the city so that the DNA of the Pearl of the South is intertwined with Breda. The club is aware of the social role that they play in the municipality of Breda and this is something of which they take seriously and so, they use The Rat Verlegh Stadium as a basis and the attraction as an important tool, to strive to play a role in stimulating and motivating different target groups.  

Martijn Hoogers – NAC Breda

Martijn Hoogers, Teacher at Playing for Success at NAC Breda, is the next confirmed speaker at our 16th EFDN Conference in Breda on 9 & 10 November 2021. 

Martijn Hoogers is a primary school teacher for two days a week. He has been working at Playing for Success for 4 years now.

Martijn will be co-hosting hosting the EFDN STEM Football and Education Programme workshop which is a pan-European project selected for financial support from UEFA Foundation for Children aiming to promote STEM Education amongst European youth. STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics – is the field that helps children learn how to program, make codes, and understand technological devices. NAC Breda started with Sphero Sports this year and will present their first experiences during the workshop.

Mart van Poppel – NAC Breda

Mart van Poppel, Project Coordinator at NAC Breda, is the next confirmed speaker at our 16th EFDN Conference in Breda on 9 & 10 November 2021. 

Mart van Poppel started as a teacher on a primary school for children with special needs. Since 10 years he is working for Playing for Success Breda where he works with children from 9 to 14 years old (primary school). In his work as project coordinator, he has contact with colleagues from the primary & secondary schools.

Mart will provide an insight to the Playing for Success programme of NAC Breda. In the NACademy, the learning center of NAC Breda, he will tell participants more about using the stadium as a classroom. He will work with children from secondary school in an interactive workshop in and around the Rat Verleghstadium.

Get your ticket for the 16th EFDN Conference in Breda here.