Why Europe’s Coaches Need a Digital Upgrade—
and How FUTURECOACH Is Delivering It
Published • by the FUTURECOACH Team
On a rainy Tuesday in Warsaw last autumn, grassroots football coach Anna Kowalska tried to film her squad’s session with a borrowed smartphone. The battery died, the angles were off, and by the time she had clips to analyse the players were already on their way home. Meanwhile, 1 300 km away, a pro club in Bruges was using real-time wearable data to fine-tune sprint loads.
The gap is real, and it’s growing.
Technology should supercharge every coach—
not just the ones with big budgets.
That conviction sparked FUTURECOACH, a two-year Erasmus+ VET project (Ref. ERASMUS-KA210-VET-2024) that sets out to put cutting-edge tools—AI, VR/AR, wearables—into the hands of all Europe’s coaches, from community volunteers to academy professionals.
The Big Picture
Sports technology can transform learning: instant video feedback shortens skill-acquisition cycles, virtual reality creates safe space for tactical scenarios, and sensor data exposes invisible workload risks. Yet 75 % of European coaches still rely on clipboards and intuition alone. FUTURECOACH bridges that divide by pairing digital innovation with vocational training pathways recognised across borders.
Who We Are
- MOBAD – Mobile Adventure Sp. z o.o. (Poland) — project lead & research hub
- FURIM INSTITUTT (Norway) — e-learning and pedagogy experts
- SpedTech (Belgium) — sport-tech developers & accessibility auditors
- Career and Coaching Management Services (Türkiye) — grassroots outreach & pilot coordination
Our Playbook
We’re tackling the challenge through four intertwined objectives:
- Listen First ▶ large-scale surveys and interviews to map real coaching pain-points.
- Build Resources ▶ e-learning modules, case studies and infographics that make tech usable tomorrow.
- Ship the Tech ▶ a pocket-ready mobile app with personalised learning, performance dashboards and peer forums.
- Keep It Inclusive ▶ design every tool to run offline, in multiple languages, and with screen-reader compatibility.
Flagship Deliverables
📱 The FUTURECOACH Mobile App (2025 Pilot)
- Interactive E-Learning Modules: Engaging multimedia content featuring gamified learning experiences tailored for coaches of all levels.
- Case Studies and Real-World Applications: Practical examples showcasing successful integration of technology in coaching.
- Step-by-Step Tutorials: Easy to follow guides on implementing advanced tools like AI, VR/AR, and wearable technology in coaching.
- Infographics and Quick Reference Guides: Condensed visuals summarizing key technologies and their applications for instant understanding.
- Coach-to-Coach Collaboration Resources: Tools to facilitate peer learning, knowledge sharing, and professional networking.
- Accessibility-Driven Design: Materials designed for diverse coaching needs with options for customization based on sport type and coaching level.
What Happens Next
Over the coming months this blog will pull back the curtain on our sprints: wire-frames one week, field-test stories the next, occasional failures included. You’ll meet Anna again—this time armed with a beta APK and, fingers crossed, no dead batteries.
Subscribe, comment, challenge us. FUTURECOACH is a team sport, and you’re on the roster.
Project funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the authors only.