LSU students have visited NBA Europe Headquarters in London
Students of Lithuanian Sports University have been invited to NBA (National Basketball Association) Europe Headquarters in London. Students of Coaching Systems and Tourism and Sports Management study programmes had a great opportunity not only to look around and feel the special spirit of basketball, but also get acquainted with the activities of this organization.
“It is a pleasure to see you all at our headquarters. I hope that this internship programme, which has been designed especially for you, will be not only informative, but also very useful“, said Vice President for Basketball Operations Neal Meyer to LSU students. Excellent professionals in their field told LSU students about successful development of the NBA brand worldwide, presented a marketing strategy, spoke about the media management and even revealed plans for the future.
“Students of a Sports Industry study programme have to actively participate in a sporting life and observe the work of various sports organizations and clubs. Gathering and systematization of necessary information allow sports managers to improve their professionalism and understand the peculiarities of sports organizations“, said Petras Aleksonis, a Master degree student of Tourism and Sports Management at LSU.
LSU and NBA Europe Headquarters have been cooperating closely for several years, and are planning to organize digital media marketing projects. NBA Vice-President for Europe Jesus Bueno Pascual, an Honorary Doctor of LSU, has also shared his experience with LSU community. “The aim of Lithuanian Sports University is to prepare specialists who are able to compete in the global market. Management of clubs and sports organizations is the area to be improved in Lithuania if we want to have a sustainable sports system, functioning effectively in the future. Learning from the best and the world's most advanced sports organizations, such as NBA, provides an opportunity to understand the factors that determine the success of organizational growth, realise how to become a dominant organization in its market segment, and create the world's leading sports organizations culture as well as other important aspects. I think it's a great experience for our students and future leaders of the Lithuanian sports management“, said the Chancellor of LSU Dr. Mindaugas Balčiūnas.
The students were fascinated by the atmosphere in NBA Europe Headquarters in London. “This internship has given me a lot of motivation. It is amazing to see that people in this institution live and work for basketball. Being here I understood what is the highest level of sports management“, said Salvijus Jagminas, a volunteer of Europe Centre for Basketball Research.
