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Jose Pablo Covarrubias internship at Austin FC

#MyInternshipAt… Jose Pablo Covarrubias takes us to Austin FC

“I am very proud to be carrying out my internship for an organization such as Austin FC. I want to thank everyone who has made this possible, specially The FBA and Austin FC staff for giving me this opportunity.”

 

Before joining The Football Business Academy, I always had the dream to pursue my career as a professional football player, just like every kid that grows up kicking the ball around the block. Reality is, most of us only get to dream about the idea of playing football for a living. Luckily for me, football has always been my passion, and for me passion is what drives me every day to keep going and thrive in life. My passion hasn’t changed since the first time I kicked an orange around in my grandma’s kitchen and fell in love with the game. Since that day, I knew that football will be a major part of my life, and nothing was going to change that.

 

I’ve been lucky enough to have traveled the world for football, I’ve played football in several countries and have experienced incredible moments and had the opportunity to make friends for life. I have always enjoyed the idea of working as a team in everything that I do, I am very open to working with others and enjoy sharing ideas and exploring new ways of looking at life and football in particular. One of the reasons I joined The FBA was to gain knowledge on the business side of football. I’ve always been amazed by how incredibly complex football can be. Throughout the first two modules of The FBA Professional Master in Football Business program, I had the opportunity to learn from highly specialized professors and lecturers in the world of football. The experience has been life-changing and I’ve absolutely loved every moment of it. The FBA has been a fantastic experience; highly interactive classes, amazing professors and an incredible group of classmates and candidates, and this would not be possible without The FBA staff who we all consider family.

 

When exploring internship opportunities as part of Module 3, Kristian (the Chief Partnerships Officer) and I discussed my interests and strengths to find something that would best suit my person. We came to the conclusion that Austin FC (MLS) would be a great fit for me. I was incredible excited to have the opportunity to work in an organization that is starting a project and has some highly respected personalities in the football world. Austin FC is Major League Soccer’s 27th franchise and will be entering the league as a new expansion team in 2021. Austin FC will be the first major league team in the city of Austin, the capital of Texas.

 

My internship with Austin FC has been with the Academy (Youth Development) and started back in the beginning of March and will continue until mid-June, followed by undertaking Module 4 of the course. I’ve always enjoyed challenging myself and getting out of my comfort zone, I believe this is how one becomes better and gets the most out of life’s experiences. Austin FC, has been a great challenge for me, and I can safely say that, every day I get the opportunity to learn something new in this organization.

 

In my role as ‘Academy Operation Intern’, I work alongside the Academy Operations Staff and fellow intern. Together, we carry out all day-to-day operations activities surrounding the Academy. Overall, my role is to assist the Academy General Manager and Academy Technical Director in creating a scouting network and database, operations and events, player assessment and player integration for the Academy, participate in conversations regarding the club culture and playing philosophy, and other operational activities.

 

I consider myself very lucky to have the opportunity to get exposure to such high-level staff members and work with them on a day-to-day basis. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, I have been working from home since March 16th; nonetheless, our team has been incredibly relentless in finding ways to continue to develop this project and keep making positive progress every day. We are working hard every day to be prepared for the day we can get back on the field and take this program to the next level.

 

During these couple of months in Austin, I’ve learned that you cannot take anything for granted, it is vital to make the most out of every day you get, and this is why I want to continue to do what I love and do it with great passion and love. I am very proud to be carrying out my internship for an organization such as Austin FC. I want to thank everyone who has made this possible, specially The FBA and Austin FC staff for giving me this opportunity. Regardless of what the future looks like, I am excited to continue to educate myself and work hard to pursue my dream of working in the football industry.

Let’s build the future of Football together!

 

Jose Pablo Covarrubias is a Candidate of The FBA’s Professional Master in Football Business 5th Edition. He can be contacted via LinkedIn.