About

Dual Career in Sports

For many professional athletes, success demands early specialization, intense training, and long-term dedication – often at the expense of academic or professional development. While these efforts may bring fame and achievement, sporting careers are typically short and uncertain, frequently ending due to injuries or unforeseen challenges. This leaves many athletes unprepared for life after sports. To address this, the European Union issued the EU Guidelines on Dual Careers of Athletes in 2012, which highlight the importance of supporting athletes in balancing sport with education or vocational training.

The Progress DC project embraces the principles of the EU Guidelines (2012) by supporting professional athletes through a structured approach: training and certifying Dual Career (DC) Advisers within sports organizations, offering athletes flexible training in transversal and digital skills, and raising awareness among stakeholders and policymakers. By bridging the gap between sports and education, Progress DC helps athletes thrive during and after their sporting careers.

At a glance

Progress DC (PROfessional GRowth through Education in the Sport Sector by pursuing a Dual Career) is a 36-month Erasmus+ Sport project that aims to support professional athletes in developing sustainable dual careers.

The project focus on 4 main pillars:

Aims & Objectives

Aims

The overall aim of Progress DC is to empower professional athletes to successfully prepare for and pursue a dual career – combining their sporting commitments with education and professional development. Recognizing the challenges athletes face during and after their sporting careers, the project seeks to provide them with the necessary tools, guidance, and support to transition smoothly into the labour market. By introducing the role of the certified Dual Career Adviser within sports organisations, offering targeted training in transversal and digital skills, and fostering strong collaboration between the sports and education sectors, Progress DC aspires to build a sustainable framework that enables athletes to thrive both on and off the field.

Main Objectives

  1. To establish the “DC Career Adviser” qualification and to train, assess and qualify coaching and other key staff of sports clubs to become DC Advisers.
  2. To profile possible careers that the professional athletes may follow, and through this to provide DC Advisors useful information.
  3. To develop the missing transversal skills, that are necessary for employment of athletes.
  4. To provide dual career advice (mentoring and coaching) through the DC Career Advisors and the VET providers to athletes.
  5. To develop a one-stop-shop, the “DC Platform” that will include – among others – best practices identified for a dual career. Through this, coaches and staff of sports organisations will receive the training and get the certification.
  6. To raise awareness about the importance of dual careers for athletes.
  7. To support the cooperation between VET providers and sports organisations and exploit this cooperation for bigger impact and education.

Target Groups

  • Athletes
  • Sports Clubs
  • (Other) sports organisations/ federations
  • Policy makers and stakeholders
  • VET providers
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