Course of Study: BSc (Hons) Applied Sport Science and Coaching

Current Job Role: Performance Analyst at FIFA

Year of Graduation: 2020

We caught up with Matty Mortimer to ask him a few questions about where his Sports degree has taken him...

What is your job role now?

I am a football analysist for FIFA. My primary role is to collect and analyse data based on FIFA’s footballing language. This language aligns technical expertise and the data itself to produce insights and to understand trends within football at all levels of the game. We look at all age groups as well as men and women’s football. The data is combined with observations from technical experts such as Steve McClaren and Arsene Wenger with the aim of understanding the game better, while hopefully improving fan experience and football as a whole at all levels of the game.

Do you enjoy the role?

It’s amazing - to watch football every day, it’s the dream.

How did college prepare you for your role now?

I did a HND at Tresham College and a Sport and PE course. This gave me a good grounding in sport and exercise science in general. The units I studied there developed my understanding of the physiological side of sport and how sport science is used in different sports. At that point of my journey, it really helped me focus on what I wanted to do next. The two years doing my HND helped me brush up on my academic skills; get applied experience in a professional academy setting; and gave me a solid understanding of the elements of sport science. I then completed my top-up degree in Applied Sport Science and Coaching at the University of Bedfordshire. My dissertation during this year was linked with the college football academy as well and I helped collect GPS data.

Which university units helped prepare you most for your current role?

The work experience unit was a key turning point in my journey as I was able to look at all the different careers and pathways in sport science and choose one that best suited me. It also gave me my first exposure to performance analysis: there was a guest lecture from Luton Town Football Club which gave me the inspiration to pursue a career in the field. The other units were performance coaching and coaching in context, which introduced me to the research behind the coaching cycle models. Those units helped me understand what it is like to work in a multidiscipline environment and the demands coaches face - which is really important in analysis because it is based on relationships between the players and coaches.

Any advice to students thinking about doing a top-up degree?

Don’t be afraid to ask questions! Don’t assume the top-up is not for you. It provides a good opportunity for exposure to a wide variety of units. The tutors and staff will support you in a number of ways and it gives you an alternative route to achieving a Bachelor's degree. The course helps you to find your own path in the sporting industry as well and gives you the freedom in your dissertation to choose a topic that you are keen on. You also get to work alongside people on other courses as well.

Finally, take all the opportunities you’re offered in the time you are at university.

Did you go on to do a Master’s Degree?

Yes. I did my undergraduate dissertation on performance analysis, and it gave me the hunger to go on and achieve a Master’s in this topic.

What was the best part of being at the University of Bedfordshire?

Being able to use all the facilities there and the elite-level equipment, which gave me the opportunity to develop my knowledge of both the equipment and its application.

Did you have any challenges at university?

Having enough hours in the day! Having clear objectives and giving myself time to do specific tasks is a good way of getting round this challenge.