Overview
Undertake policy-oriented research to examine residential sport academies as de facto care institutions for children, focusing on residential football academies. The objective is to generate evidence-based recommendations for norm-setting and regulatory frameworks to safeguard children's rights and wellbeing.
Tasks Summary
- Generate robust, policy-relevant evidence on residential sport academies as de facto care environments for children.
- Inform the development of enforceable norms, standards, and regulatory approaches at global and national levels.
- Translate research findings into concrete, actionable recommendations for policy, funding conditionalities, and oversight mechanisms.
- Identify critical leverage points within FIFA’s norm-setting role and national legislative and regulatory frameworks.
Experience Requirements
- At least 8–10 years of progressively responsible experience in applied research directly related to sports and development for children.
- Knowledge and capacities related to research on child protection, child wellbeing, alternative care, institutional settings, or safeguarding systems.
- Demonstrable experience in the direct intersections of sports and child rights, protection and safeguarding.
- Highly relevant thematic experience in one or more of the following domains: residential care, institutionalization, care reform; safeguarding in education, sport, faith-based or other residential settings; violence against children; child and youth participation.
- Demonstrated experience designing and implementing mixed-methods research (qualitative-led), including desk-based evidence reviews and synthesis, key informant interviews, and case study research for UNICEF, UN and equivalent.
- Demonstrated experience applying ethical research standards involving children and young people.
- Proven experience conducting research in LMIC contexts, including across diverse regulatory and cultural settings.
- Experience engaging with policy makers, government counterparts, UN agencies and larger international/regional institutions, civil society and industry on sensitive child protection or human rights issues.
- Prior research experience specifically related to elite sport, sports academies or sport for development, and/or other talent-focused residential institutions (desirable).
Qualification Requirements
An advanced University degree in social policy, public policy, international development, sociology, psychology, education, public health or related discipline, preferably with a sports- and/or child and adolescence-related focus.
