DINAMO DEVELOPMENT HUB: „WAY 2 SUCCESS“ CONFERENCE

GNK Dinamo proudly presents the first international scientific conference organised by Dinamo’s Youth Academy!

Dinamo Development Hub is the official name of the platform through which the most decorated Croatian football club and one of the most successful football academies in the world, Dinamo’s Youth Academy, will organise various professional and scientific events.

The first conference organised as part of the project is named “WAY 2 SUCCESS” and it will take place in the form of a two-day webinar, on 7 and 8 February 2021. The webinar is divided by topic into two segments of lectures – the first one dealing with the organisation of the football academy, with a focus on the U-8 to U-14 categories, and the second one dealing with the U-15 to U-19 categories, and, naturally, the senior squad. The official language of the conference is English.

The main idea of the conference is to present the successful model of Dinamo’s Academy’s operation and system of working with young players, as well as to exchange knowledge during lectures held by football experts with a vast, years-long experience in working with young athletes. The conference will provide all participants with an insight into Dinamo’s know-how and it also represents a great opportunity to exchange theoretical and practical knowledge, experiences, ideas, approaches and strategies.

All details about the conference, lecture schedule and project

are available at

https://conference.gnkdinamo.hr

Due to the current circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and epidemiological measures prescribed by competent institutions, and with the aim of allowing interested individuals from Croatia, Europe and worldwide to participate in the conference, the conference will be held online via ZOOM. Besides attending the lectures, participants will also be allowed to actively participate via live Q&A sessions, together with the conference moderator and professional lecturers.

What are the secrets of Dinamo’s unique and well-proven player development model? How challenging is the journey of a talented young boy from a football academy prospect to a World Cup finalist? How do spontaneity and the art of improvisation fit into the process of systematic work? How does football benefit from an interdisciplinary approach modelled on the methods used in other sports and various businesses? These are only some of the topics to be discussed at the upcoming professional conference.

LECTURERS

It is our pleasure to announce the names of a total of 13 lecturers who will share their experience, knowledge and practical examples at the “WAY 2 SUCCESS” conference. One lecture will be held by GNK Dinamo’s first team assistant coach and the club’s former trophy-winning player, Damir Krznar, as well as by the long-time conditioning coach at Dinamo’s Youth Academy and initiator of the project, Tamara Despot. External lecturers Anja Živković, a FIFA consultant, UEFA WF instructor and youth coach, and Luka Milanović, Associate Professor at the Department of Kinesiology of Sports of the Faculty of Kinesiology in Zagreb and the conditioning coach of the Croatian A national team, will also share their experience and knowledge about specific topics through interesting lectures. A total of 11 lecturers are experienced professionals from GNK Dinamo’s system, who have been participating in the Academy’s work, taking actions to change trends and had an impact on the system of working with young players.

List of lecturers:

Damir Krznar, Tamara Despot, Dominik Hukman, Ivan Kovčić, Ivan Mijač, Ivan Senzen, Marko Cindrić, Marko Matušinskij, Sandra Šućurović, Toni Grkinić, Zlatko Bašić, Anja Živković, Luka Milanović

The conference moderator will be Tihana Nemčić, Doctor of Science at the Department of Kinesiology of Sports of the Faculty of Kinesiology in Zagreb and a prominent football player.

HOW TO APPLY

This scientific conference will provide sports, football and physiotherapy experts with a deeper insight into the work system of the Croatian champion and its Academy. It is primarily intended for everyone involved in the technical and tactical preparation of athletes, physiotherapists and psychologists. However, it is also suitable for students, professional staff at football academies and any other interested parties.

Regular package, priced at EUR 250.00, includes access to all lectures on both days of the conference, access to Q&A sessions with the lecturers, recordings of all lectures, a digital brochure and a digital certificate of participation in the scientific conference. Student package is priced at EUR 95.00 and also includes all of the above.

Dinamo Development Hub also allows all those who are not able to participate in the conference in person to download the materials (lecture recordings and the conference brochure). The price of the package without participation amounts to HRK 1,895.00.

ABOUT GNK DINAMO’S ACADEMY

Dinamo’s Youth Academy is one of the most successful football academies in the world. For many years, GNK Dinamo has underlined the importance of the Academy’s work and player development. Among other things, this system involves developing and guiding talented players at the Academy, learning and automating technical and tactical finesse and a gradual process of young players’ integration into senior football by getting them used to playing at a high intensity and under great pressure.

The pinnacle of the successful work of GNK Dinamo’s Youth Academy was the success of the Croatian national team at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Its work is built into the foundations of the national team’s greatest ever result and the silver medal won at the 2018 World Cup. Fourteen players who played for GNK Dinamo participated in that success, ten of whom were home-grown. When it comes to the World Cup finals, Dinamo also holds a record in two categories – in terms of the number of home-grown players and the number of former or current players.

Dinamo’s juniors reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Youth League for two consecutive seasons. In the 2018/2019 season, they reached the final of the Premier League International Cup, a prestigious international youth club competition. In 2018, Dinamo won the FIFA Youth Cup, a competition involving the best youth teams in the world. Also, in 2013, Dinamo won the Nike Premier Cup, the unofficial U-14 World Cup at the time.

Željko Kopić, Head of Dinamo's Youth Academy

- For many years, Dinamo has been setting the trends of young player development. Strategy, fostering certain values and setting precise objectives have been at the core of its globally recognised work and success. For that reason, we decided to establish the Dinamo Development Hub and we wish to share our knowledge and experience at the “Way 2 Success'” conference. Our goal is to present the extremely successful work model of Dinamo’s Youth Academy, whose work system, scientific approach and following of trends allow constant remarkable results at an international level. Experts of various profiles from the Youth Academy will present our method of work, while guest lecturers will also contribute to the quality of the webinar through their own lectures. I believe that all participants will gain a clear insight into how we affect young player development.

Damir Krznar, assistant coach of GNK Dinamo’s first team and UEFA Pro Coach

- This type of professional scientific conference, organised by a world-renowned football academy, will be presented by Dinamo to the Croatian public for the first time. Such practice of professional platforms and conferences exists at many clubs in Europe and in the world. I am proud that Dinamo has also started such an initiative and made a step forward in our region. It is an honour for me to be one of the lecturers. This webinar will certainly provide a unique opportunity for all participants to exchange theoretical and practical knowledge, different experiences and ideas. Moreover, experts from the world of sports and everyone interested will surely gain a deeper insight into the reasons why Dinamo’s Academy is considered one of the best in the world and why it has an excellent basis for developing successful footballers.

Tamara Despot, conditioning coach at Dinamo's Youth Academy and project manager

- It is a great honour and pleasure to present our new platform, Dinamo Development Hub. As part of this platform, this year we present the „Way 2 Success“ conference. The topics to be discussed at the conference will concern the area of technique and tactics, fitness, physiotherapy and psychology. I would like to invite all coaches, physiotherapists and persons involved in the football training process  to join us at the conference on 7 and 8 February 2021.