Sports Business MBA by EB Institute holds session in Kaunas 0

The 2017-18 class of the Sports Business MBA by EB Institute came together last week for their second in-person session in Kaunas, Lithuania. The five-day agenda was split into three days dedicated to lectures from academic and Lithuanian industry leaders, which were held at Vytautas Magnus University (VMU), and two days of lectures and site inspections from Zalgiris Kaunas and Zalgirio Arena.

In addition to presentations from the six module leaders, students heard from industry leaders including KPMG Senior Manager Edvinas Zukauskas, Svyturio Brand Manager Ieva Raciene and Lithuanian Basketball Federation Secretary General Mindaugas Spokas. Zalgiris Kaunas and Zalgirio Arena senior management shared their expertise in communications, ticketing, arena management, basketball operations, security, event management, finance and governance.

“It was a unique experience to be in Lithuania, the land of basketball,” said Turkish national and Canada resident Omer Seymen. “It was great to be able to meet with Zalgiris Kaunas representatives, learn from their experience and visit one of the most special venues in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague both for a live game as well as studying the building from top to bottom. This second session gave us a chance to get together with our classmates once again, improving our group dynamics even further. It was also a great opportunity to visit VMU, meet with the professors in person and be able to spend quality time with them.”

Spanish student Javier Pesquera, who currently resides in Sweden, also took away valuable knowledge and experience from his time in Kaunas. “Honestly, even though I had high expectations for the Sports Business MBA’s second session, the access that we had to an elite club like Zalgiris Kaunas really surprised me, not only due to the level of hospitality they showed us, but how they explained their business at all levels. When it came to the academic lecturers they went above and beyond their call of duty, staying late with us after the schedule and showing us around the campus and city with a level of implication rarely shown by any professor in my previous studies.”

In the current class, students from cities as diverse as Toronto, Lagos, Madrid, Bucharest, Athens and Istanbul have been using in-person sessions combined with an e-learning platform. The January 15 to 19, 2018, meeting was the second of four in-person sessions the students will attend during the course. After their initial gathering at Euroleague Basketball headquarters in Barcelona, Spain, the students will next meet in person at the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Belgrade, Serbia, this May for lectures from global industry leaders at the third session of the Sports Business MBA, which will further shape their insights in the sports business. The fourth and final session back in Kaunas will take place in October, with the viva and diploma ceremony.