The importance of sport has grown both on an educational level and also on a national scale over the past years. The government and the competent sports authorities are recognising this and giving more importance to the sector.

To be able to have sustainable growth, it is important to have professional administrators taking care of our sports facilities and our athletes of tomorrow.

The Ministry of Education has been funding the Malta Sports Scholarships for the past few years. This is designed to fund administration and management courses to help in the development of individuals wanting to study sports administration and management.

Having been involved in sports since a very young age, I always wanted to become qualified in this field. Thanks to the sports scholarship I obtained, I enrolled and graduated in the MBA Masters in sports management at the European University of Madrid. This university is affiliated with the Real Madrid Graduate School, an institution founded by the La Liga football club to cater for the increasing need of sports professionals in the industry, one of the fastest-growing sectors in the world, which is now worth between €350 and €450 billion.

Throughout the course, we were exposed to a series of modules that included a real-case scenario helping us apply our knowledge to everyday situations. This was also enhanced by a one-week visit to the superb facilities available at Real Madrid in which we could see the high-level set-up available at this great football club.

Throughout the entire process, I received useful help from the Scholarships Division within the Ministry of Education.

I encourage others interested to pursue studies in this field to seek more information about the incentives offered by the authorities.