UVMIS Road Test Event: Strengthening Volunteer Management in Sport
On the 27 February 2026, ENGSO successfully delivered its Road Test Event for the Upskilling Volunteer Managers in Sport (UVMIS) project, welcoming participants representing various countries and organisations in a highly interactive online session. The event offered a first look at the new curriculum designed to professionalise volunteer management in sport and strengthen the volunteer ecosystem across Europe.
About UVMIS project
Upskilling Volunteer Managers in Sport (UVMIS) project is focusing on improving volunteer management in sports organisations. The team will develop training and learning resources for current and former volunteer managers in sport, tailored to the diverse needs of different organisations.
Participants praised the initiative as timely, much-needed, and highly valuable, highlighting the lack of formal training opportunities for sport volunteer managers and the urgent need to legitimise and elevate the profession within sport organisations. Attendees found the curriculum promising and well-structured, acknowledging the clear learning objectives and logical flow across sessions. They valued the balanced approach between theory and practice and recognised the potential to transfer new skills into real-world sport settings.
Participants also emphasised the need for the curriculum to include authentic case studies and assignments based on real challenges as well as opportunities for placements, consultancy tasks, and hands-on experiences.
The event also included a pilot training session around Volunteer energy, one of the most fundamental themes of the programme.
The pilot session resonated strongly with participants, who appreciated the metaphors, frameworks, and practical principles showcasing how to nurture volunteer energy and build a sustainable volunteer ecosystem. Rich discussions emerged, with participants offering examples from their own contexts. They noted that adding more best-practice examples from sport organisations would further strengthen the sport volunteer management ecosystem.
Overall, a consensus was reached amongst attendees that many sport organisations still struggle with volunteer quality, strategic planning, and recognition of volunteer management as a professional discipline. The UVMIS curriculum was seen as a meaningful step toward transforming this situation.
The next phase of the project includes pilot training sessions on selected content from the UVMIS Master’s curriculum that anyone could participate in for free. To find out more about these and to sign up please visit the link below: