SINGAPORE, 19 JULY 2019 – The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) has been conferred with the ‘B’ Level Membership under the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Coaching Convention as of 1 July 2019.

This accords FAS the right to organise AFC ‘B’ Diploma courses and issue the corresponding diplomas and licences, which allows us to tailor the course to suit local needs.

The application for the Coaching Convention was submitted last year, with AFC officials subsequently coming to Singapore to assess the courses. With a new Technical Director, Mr Joseph Palatsides and Head, Coach Education and Development, Mr Zainudeen Hassan, appointed earlier this year, FAS is committed to implementing the FAS Coaching Education programme that was part of the submission.

Mr Zainudeen said: “We can now come up with course content that will be based on the needs of the local coaching community, which will still be in line with AFC’s guidelines. This will allow us to create a more beneficial learning environment for our coaches and we are delighted that the AFC has accorded us the Coaching Convention.”

The B Diploma Course aims to develop coaches with the required competencies to coach players aged 14 to 19 years old as well as amateur players. A wide range of topics – including diet, nutrition, game systems and team tactics – are covered in both theoretical and practical modules.

Zainudeen added: “The ‘B’ Diploma allows coaches to coach at elite youth level here, such as the Centre of Excellence teams, and is also the minimum requirement for head coaches in the National Football League (NFL) Division One.”

The first ‘B’ Diploma Course under this Coaching Convention will be held in September and Zainudeen added that the FAS is aiming to attain the Coaching Convention for the ‘A’ Diploma in the coming years.