UCFB, a world first in higher education delivering university degrees in the football, sport and leisure industries inside the iconic Wembley Stadium and Burnley’s historic Turf Moor, is marking a significant step in its growth with the launch of its third campus at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester.
UCFB Etihad Campus will allow students to live, learn and work at the heart of one of Europe’s leading sporting facilities. UCFB’s newest location will see lectures and seminars delivered within the Etihad Stadium itself, building on the unique learning environment harnessed since the pioneering higher education institution was founded. Amongst further Etihad Campus facilities, the agreement will also see the impressive City Football Academy facilities utilised during students’ degree programmes.
The new campus at the Etihad Stadium is a significant step in UCFB’s impressive growth. Following its inception in 2011 at Burnley FC’s Turf Moor stadium, UCFB’s second campus was unveiled inside the iconic Wembley Stadium in 2014. Earlier this week, UCFB agreed the UK’s first ever higher education partnership with the Real Madrid Graduate School, which will see UCFB postgraduate students spend time in Madrid as part of their degree programme.
Brendan Flood, Chairman & Co-Founder of UCFB, said: “The UCFB Etihad Campus is a very exciting development for us and gives our students the opportunity to study right at the heart of the most progressive sporting facility in the world.
“We are also aware that locating our campus in the heart of this community will support the football club and Manchester City Council with their long-term legacy and social mobility goals as well as providing economic benefits for local people and local businesses. I am convinced that our already internationally recognised faculty will benefit from the global profile the Etihad Campus has already developed.”
Professor Philip Wilson, Provost & Chief Executive and Co-Founder of UCFB, said: “This is truly a landmark moment for the development of UCFB and also for higher education in this country. This momentous addition for UCFB reiterates our standing as the world leader in higher education for the football and sport industries.
“Our expansion to the Etihad Campus will provide UCFB with highly advanced, world-leading facilities that epitomise the football club’s professionalism and winning mentality in the business of football.”
Following the graduation of its first two classes of students, an impressive 90 percent of UCFB alumni are in full-time employment, with two in three of those graduates working within the highly competitive sports industry.
Professor Wilson believes that UCFB Etihad Campus students will enjoy in its graduates’ success in future, playing a central role within the ever-expanding global business of sport. He said: “Our graduates’ success is a result of the unrivalled access to placements and work experience opportunities with leading sports organisations throughout each of UCFB’s degree programmes. Our new campus in Manchester will provide us with the ability to connect our students with another world-class sporting environment, perfectly complementing our existing locations in Burnley and Wembley Stadium. We look forward to our UCFB Etihad Campus students leaving their mark as future leaders in the industry.”
Sir Richard Leese, CBE, Leader of Manchester City Council, welcomed the arrival of UCFB to Manchester. He said: “The launch of the UCFB Etihad Campus will further strengthen Manchester’s proud history of higher education institutions in the city. UCFB’s arrival in Manchester will inspire more of our young people to continue into higher education and give them even greater choice of courses and locations to study.
“In particular, the arrival of a higher education establishment to the Etihad Campus is a clear signal of the continued positive effect on regeneration that our partnership with the football club is having on the area. I welcome the arrival of the first class of UCFB students to the city in September 2016 and am certain that they will add a positive dynamic to Manchester’s thriving student population and world-class sporting scene.”
In addition to its inimitable degree programmes, UCFB offers an exclusive Complementary Curriculum™ alongside its academic programme. This gives access to best-in-class executive speakers across the industry and exceptional work experience opportunities, ensuring UCFB students graduate as well-rounded, empowered individuals.
