Bhutan, Netherlands football bodies ink treaty
Apr 13, 2023
Thimphu [Bhutan], April 13 : Netherlands will provide assistance to Bhutan in promoting football, including training community coaches and aligning them with licensing structures.
Bhutan Football Federation (BFF) and the Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Wednesday in Thimphu as part of the ongoing five-day course on coaching and life skills, The Bhutan Live reported.
The five-being course which began on April 10 is being conducted through World Coaches Programme at Royal Thimphu College.
BFF and KNVB will co-create projects for coach education in Bhutan to give training to community coaches and align them with the licensing structures of AFC and skill upgradation programmes for coaches in Bhutan, as per the news report.
In addition, the Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) will provide help to Bhutan Football Federation with a youth team development plan, referee education, sustainable infrastructure projects, women's football development, infrastructure guidelines, planning support and others, according to The Bhutan Live report.
The course is facilitated by Johan Neeskens and Bert Zuurma from KNVB. 28 coaches are participating in this maiden programme. Johan Neeskens said that Bhutan has good facilities in comparison to the 40 countries he has visited so far and has the potential to develop football, as per the news report.
Neeskens said each coach must play a constructive role in producing good players and promoting sports as means of social development. He further said, "A coach should be creative and know what kind of training is required for different age groups," as per the news report. According to him, the coach should impart various life skills to children and not only focus on football.
Johan Neeskens said that the coach should understand the problems of each player and needs to be consistent to bring children to the right path. He said that KNVB officials will visit Bhutan in the future and see the improvement of coaches and players, according to The Bhutan Live report.
Participants called the course unique and added that they will implement it in their respective clubs. WorldCoaches Programme founder Johannes Antonius stressed that social responsibility is a part of football and it should be made as a policy for the development of football.
