THE TALENT DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT RETURNS.

Ian has been part of Brighton’s academy since 2013, progressing from a coach in the youth development phase to U18 Lead Coach, Assistant Academy Manager and Head of Academy Coaching before taking on his current role.


Today, he oversees the academy program and player pathway from pre-academy through to U21, working closely with the club’s multidisciplinary teams. During his time at Brighton, he has also been part of the academy’s development from Category 2 to Category 1 and has seen numerous academy graduates progress to make their Premier League debuts.


A key part of Brighton’s approach is looking beyond football development alone. Education, player care and holistic support play an important role in preparing young players for both football and non-football pathways.


At the Summit, Ian will bring that long-term perspective to the discussion and share insights from more than a decade of developing players, coaches and pathways within Brighton’s academy.

For nearly three decades, Nuno has been part of player development at Benfica. Today, he leads the club’s performance analysis department, connecting data, football expertise and research to support coaches and players throughout the development process.


At TDS25, Nuno gave us a detailed look behind Benfica’s approach to performance analysis. From integrating data across numerous systems into an in-house infrastructure to translating those insights into practical decisions, one message stood out: data creates value when it is understood in context and connected to what happens on the pitch.


He also showed how close collaboration between analysts, scientists and coaches helps turn observation into action – supporting more individualized development and better-informed decisions without replacing the expertise of the coach.


We’re very pleased to welcome Nuno back to Graz this November and continue the discussion around how analysis can support long-term player development at one of Europe’s most renowned academies.

Since taking responsibility for youth development in 2017, Jochen has helped shape the pathway from the FC Bayern Campus towards the first team. In recent years, players such as Aleksandar Pavlović, Josip Stanišić and Lennart Karl have progressed through the club’s development system and established themselves at senior level, while Bayern continues to evolve its approach to the transition into professional football.


But Jochen’s perspective increasingly extends beyond Munich. As Managing Director of Red&Gold Football, the joint venture between FC Bayern and Los Angeles FC, he is also involved in building international development pathways and cooperation between academies across different football markets.


One example is Red&Gold’s partnership with Gambinos Stars Africa in Gambia. Bara Sapoko Ndiaye recently made the move from the partner academy to Munich and earned a permanent contract with FC Bayern, providing a concrete example of how these international structures can create new pathways for young talent.


At this year’s Summit, Jochen will bring both perspectives to the conversation: developing talent through an academy pathway towards one of Europe’s leading first teams, while building international structures and partnerships for identifying and developing players across different football markets.

Carl has spent much of his career working at the intersection of player and coach development. Before joining Everton, he spent more than 17 years with the Football Association of Wales, where he served as Head of Coach Education and worked extensively across the national teams. Alongside his work with the FAW, he gained further experience in the professional game through senior coaching roles at Wrexham AFC and The New Saints.


Since joining Everton FC, Carl has held several senior positions within the academy, including Head of Academy Coaching and Interim Academy Director. Today, as Head of Academy Coach Development, his work focuses on supporting coaches and creating the conditions for effective learning and development across the academy.


At the Summit, Carl will provide a closer look at the learning objective process and how clearly defined development goals can support the work between coaches and players.

Sudarshan Gopaladesikan is Technical Director at Newcastle United, having previously held senior roles in football intelligence and data science at Atalanta BC and SL Benfica. Before entering professional football, he worked at Microsoft, where he was part of the team involved in developing Power BI.


His work focuses on combining video analysis and data to develop game models and support coaching decisions. He is particularly interested in how complex insights can be translated into practical ideas for coaches and players. His approach emphasizes guided discovery, encouraging open discussions and collaborative problem-solving within his teams.


At the Summit, Sudarshan will explore the transition from academy to first-team football, drawing on his experience in Portugal, Italy, and England. He will examine how clubs can use data, including information they collect themselves, to better understand player development and prepare young talents for the demands of senior football.

Few people in academy football have spent as much of their career working directly with the formative stages of player development. Over more than 25 years, Mirko has coached age groups from U12 to U16 at Empoli FC and Fiorentina, experiencing first-hand how players develop through some of the most important years of their football education.


Since 2020, he has taken that experience into a broader role at Fiorentina. As Technical Director for the U8–U15 age groups, he oversees the technical direction across these development phases, supporting a consistent approach to how young players learn and progress through the academy.


His work also reaches beyond Florence, with responsibility for Fiorentina’s Italian affiliate clubs and international technical projects. This adds another dimension to his experience: how a clear development philosophy can be applied across different coaches, teams and football environments.


In Graz, Mirko will bring the focus back to where every player pathway begins: the formative years. We’re looking forward to his perspective on how clubs can build strong foundations early while keeping the long-term development of each player in view.

Having previously led academies at Southampton, Swansea City and Dundee United, Andy now looks at talent development from a broader perspective. His current role spans Southampton FC, Göztepe SK and Valenciennes FC, alongside partnerships in Africa, with the challenge of creating a clear talent strategy across different clubs, countries and football environments.


And that goes far beyond moving players between clubs. Andy’s work focuses on aligning strategic priorities, frameworks and processes around recruitment, development and player pathways, while still respecting the individual context and objectives of each club.


His experience also comes with a strong track record in developing young players. Across his different roles, Andy has worked with talents including Billy Gilmour, Tyler Dibling, Jay Robinson, Sam Amo-Ameyaw, Justin Devenny and John Souttar.


At the Summit, Andy will give us a closer look at what it takes to lead talent development across a multi-club organization, how common structures can support different clubs, and what this can ultimately mean for individual player outcomes.

What makes Tim’s working environment particularly interesting is the structure behind it. The academy develops players for both FC Twente and Heracles Almelo, creating a shared development system designed to prepare players for two different professional environments.


Tim has been part of that system since 2023. He initially led the academy’s Regional Plan, managing its intake phase and collaboration with 95 partner clubs across the region. Today, as Head of Football Operations, his responsibilities include scouting, the regional network, contract management and the wider strategy behind the academy.


Developing talent for two clubs creates questions that most academies never have to answer. How do you build one development philosophy that serves two different professional teams? How do you organize scouting and recruitment without competing for the same talent? And how can a shared structure ultimately create better opportunities for individual players?


In Graz, Tim will take us inside this model and share how the FC Twente/Heracles Academy approaches these questions in practice.

Over the past 15 years, Domenico Mattiaccia has gained extensive experience in player development, coaching and football methodology across Italy, Spain and the United States. His career includes leading coaching roles at AC Cesena and SPAL, where he worked with both players and coaches across different stages of their development. His approach has been particularly influenced by his time in Spain and the work of Professor Paco Seirul·lo, emphasizing the connection between a club’s playing philosophy, training methodology and individual player development.


As Head of Academy Coaching and Player Development at Bologna FC, Domenico focuses on establishing consistent development pathways throughout the academy. His work combines coach development with a shared football methodology, ensuring that individual player development remains closely connected to the club’s long-term sporting strategy.


At the Talent Development Summit, Domenico will present Bologna FC’s Individual Development Plan (IDP) framework, offering insights into how the academy aligns individual development objectives with its game model and training methodology, and how these principles are translated into everyday coaching practice.

With more than 25 years of experience in sports, Tiago Moura has built a career spanning coaching, talent development, sports management, and organizational development. He holds a PhD in Sports Sciences from the University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro and a Master’s degree in Sports Management from the University of Porto. His doctoral research examined the relationship between athlete development and the strategic management of football clubs.


Throughout his career, Tiago has held various coaching and technical leadership positions, including five years with the Portuguese Football Federation, where he worked on development projects, academy certification, and organizational processes. Today, as Director of Youth Development at Vitória Sport Clube, he oversees the club’s youth development program, combining his academic background with practical experience in football and organizational leadership.


At the Talent Development Summit, Tiago will present Vitória SC’s Academy Development Program, which takes a holistic approach to developing young players across three complementary dimensions: athletic, social, and academic development. He will share how the club brings these areas together to support players both on and off the pitch, while demonstrating how a comprehensive approach to youth development can contribute to the club’s long-term growth and sustainability.

With more than 30 years of experience in football, Carlos has worked his way through different levels of the game, from smaller clubs to leading academy environments. His career includes four seasons at FC Barcelona and ten seasons at RC Celta de Vigo, where he gained extensive experience in coaching, academy development and sporting leadership.


Today, he is taking on a different challenge in Saudi Arabia. At Al Qadsiah, Carlos is involved in building the foundations of a long-term academy project, developing structures, coaching methods and player pathways suited to the club’s ambitions and the local football environment.


His work includes translating that long-term strategy into practical development programs across different age groups, with a focus on preparing young players for the next stages of their careers.


At the Summit, Carlos will bring insights from building a talent development system in Saudi Arabia, drawing on his experience in European football and the challenges of establishing a clear academy philosophy in a different football environment.

Projekt 12 is at the heart of the ÖFB’s approach to supporting Austria’s top young talents. Built around individual development, the program connects players, clubs, academies and the federation while bringing together expertise from coaching, sports science, medicine, psychology and other areas of player development.


The aim is to create a 360° view of each player and provide individualized support throughout the pathway – while encouraging players to take increasing responsibility for their own development.


In Graz, Günter will connect these structures with one of the most remarkable recent chapters in Austrian youth football: the U17 national team’s run to the final of the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar.

With experience in academy coaching and coordination, performance analysis, and head coaching roles in Spanish women’s football, Juan brings different perspectives on player and coach development.


At #TDS26, he will share how Real Betis approaches player development across different age groups, connecting the club’s playing philosophy with its coaching methodology and assessment processes.


His session will explore how a clear player identity, game identity, and coach profile provide a shared framework for developing young talent.