Partners in Football Supporters Europe (FSE)’s Erasmus+ project LIAISE II met in Prague, Czechia, on 21-22 November for the project’s second transnational management meeting.
Hosted by the Czech Football League (LFA), the two-day meeting brought together representatives from all project partners to review progress halfway through the project and agree priorities for the year ahead.
The meeting was attended by partners from FSE, the European Group of Policing Football and NFIP Experts (EGPF-NFIP), Ligová Fotbalová Asociace (Czech Football League), Ligue de Football Professionnel (French Football League), Cumann Peile na hÉireann (Football Association of Ireland), Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbalbond (Dutch Football Association), Federația Română de Fotbal (Romanian Football Federation), and Foreningen Svensk Elitfotboll (Swedish Football League).
Reviewing progress across Europe
Discussions focused on the delivery of the project’s core activities, including national training events and peer-learning observation visits between partner organisations.
Partners shared updates on the observation visits completed so far and exchanged experiences from different national contexts. The meeting also provided an opportunity to review preparations for upcoming national training events in each partner country.
As part of the project’s ongoing quality assurance process, independent evaluator Paul Rhodes presented feedback on progress to date and highlighted areas of good practice emerging from the project as well as areas in need of fine-tuning.
The meeting concluded with a discussion on activities planned for the final year of LIAISE II, including the development of national action plans, guidance to support effective cooperation between host police and Supporter Liaison Officers (SLOs), and preparations for the final project conference.
Building better cooperation for better matchdays
LIAISE II aims to strengthen cooperation between host police and SLOs across Europe, helping to improve the matchday experience for supporters while supporting safe, inclusive, and welcoming football environments.
Building on research conducted during the first year of the project, partners are working to identify practical solutions to common challenges and to address misconceptions that can exist between police, SLOs, and supporters. The project also seeks to raise awareness of the Council of the European Union resolution on police liaison with SLOs, adopted in October 2022.
By promoting effective communication, mutual understanding, and shared good practice, the project supports a more supporter-focused approach to football matches across Europe.
Looking ahead
Over the coming months, partners will continue delivering key project activities, including:
- National training events in each partner country
- Completion of the remaining peer-learning observation visits
- A meeting of the project advisory panel of external experts
- The development of legacy outputs, including guidance materials and national action plans
Following the meeting, FSE’s EU Projects Specialist, Mattia Angelini, said:
“This 2nd Transnational Meeting was a great chance to reflect on the work done so far and lay down the plans for the next steps of the project. All the partners praised the learning experience of the project’s observation visits and shared a clear vision on the national training events that will be organised in the next few months, showing great teamwork and a very proactive attitude to achieving the project objectives.”
As the project enters its final phase, partners will continue working together to translate research findings and shared learning into practical tools that strengthen cooperation between police and SLOs, ultimately helping to improve experiences of matches.