Interview with Emil Kot - founder of the non-profit scouting project

’Ty też też masz szansę’ dates back to 2015. It is a series of matches organised by football enthusiasts to help young players in their football careers. An extensive scouting network that, a few years ago, overtook even the biggest clubs. And it has always been pro bono.

What is scouting?

Football scouts, the people who find potential players for football clubs and academies, play a key role in the recruitment process. Not only do they need to have an excellent knowledge of the game, they also need to have analytical and communication skills. Their job involves observing youth football, assessing players' potential, collecting data on them and keeping in touch with managers and coaches.

Emil Kot is a sports enthusiast through and through. He has worked as a scout and coach for many clubs. Polonia Warszawa, Wisła Płock, Balham FC and West Ham United are just a few. In 2015 he launched the ‘Ty też masz szansę’ (‘You Also Have a Chance') project. Inspired by English football, he decided to revolutionise the fledgling scouting system in Poland. As a football romantic, he never wanted to benefit financially from the venture. In order to make it possible for young players to take part in free test matches, he regularly runs fundraising campaigns on zrzutka.pl. In 2023 he also launched a campaign on the international version of the platform - 4fund.com.

Interview with Emil Kot

Kamil Majda: You are a person who has always been involved in football. Could you tell me about your beginnings? How did it all start?

Emil Kot: Quite a long time ago. I think I was 5 or 6 years old. I started training at a local club that no longer exists - Polfa Tarchomin. Its ground is now occupied by Escola Varsovia. Traditionally, I played a lot of football at school, during breaks and in my spare time. Whenever there was an opportunity, you and your friends would take the ball, go outside and play. We played football literally everywhere. Later I was at Polonia Warsaw, where I spent a lot of time. Then I moved to Dolcan Ząbki for a while. After that, I went back to Polonia... You could say I rotated a bit. Eventually, at the age of 13-14, I found myself at Marcovia Marki, where I stayed until my senior year and made my debut at the age of 16 in what was then the fifth league (now the fourth, fifth level of competition). That's how it went from there.

What football activities are you currently involved in?

I am currently a coach at AFC Wimbledon Academy, working mainly with the U-15 and U-16, which is the main thing I do in football. I have also been involved in the ‘Football Courses’ training project for the past four years, which I started together with Paweł Wojtas. Some time ago, we were mainly involved in scouting training, but now we focus only on courses, conferences and webinars for football coaches. Ultimately, we want to expand our activities. We would like to make it possible for coaches from the UK to go on work experience placements in Central and Eastern Europe. And, of course, there is 'Ty też masz szansę', which now will have its 14th edition. As you know, the project takes place twice a year, so it's not all-consuming. The next edition in Warsaw will involve me less. It will be hosted by Daniel Dąbrowski. I now want to focus on another initiative.

Can you tell us what it will be?

‘Play Abroad’ will provide an opportunity for players from the UK who are unable to make it to the professional level. We are going to come out with an offer to play abroad. It is a very similar initiative to 'Ty też masz szansę’', but now typically commercial. We will be a bridge between the player and the club looking for a player with a certain profile. We will put them in touch with agents, coaches and sporting directors. A platform that will help with transfers outside the UK. At the moment it is the Polish, Lithuanian, Estonian, Latvian, Maltese, Gibraltar, Slovenian and Croatian markets. We have contacts everywhere. We are just about to launch, with the first game probably coming out in January.

You've lived in England for a long time. You've worked at various clubs and academies, so you know a lot about football behind the scenes. It is well known how strong the football culture is in the UK. Could you describe your experience of English football and compare it with Polish football?

The difference is mainly in the intensity of the game. Even at the lower levels of the game, where I have been working for the last 5-6 years. Players from the lower English leagues who come to Poland for tests often say that the game is much slower here. There is not as much aggression, teams tend to stay in their own half and play on the counter. In England, even in the 85th minute when the score is 3-0, there is a desire to play. To get at least one goal before the end of the game. In Poland, the match is already over. That is the most obvious difference.

There are a lot more matches in England, which I think gives players more opportunities to develop in a competitive environment, which is a big advantage in the long run. For example, at the seventh, eighth or ninth level, players can play 45 games in a season, which are competitive matches. If someone is 16-18 years old, playing in the seventh division and all the cups, they can get a lot of minutes on the pitch. I think that is very important for a player's development because you can get over 4,000 minutes a season.

You play football almost all year round. We play very often: Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, Christmas, New Year... In 2022, I think we even played a match on Christmas Eve, at the 9th level! In Poland, depending on the league, a player plays around 3,000 minutes, which is about 1,000 minutes less than an English player. That is a lot, with almost 11 games a season. In England, on the other hand, there are far fewer training sessions - mainly on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the lower levels. The players may have less understanding of the game and tactics, but there is the advantage of physical preparation and match fitness. In Poland it's the other way round - I think the players are smarter. Even at these lower levels there is a trend towards tactical analysis. But when Polish players come to England, they are surprised by the speed of the game.

Where did the idea for 'Ty też masz szansę' come from?

The idea came from England. It also had to do with my first visit to the UK, when I had to deal with these test matches. Footballers who were not being tested directly for a club, something I had never seen before in Poland. There were no open trials in Poland at that time. I decided to start such an initiative. It was also connected with the birth of my daughter. I believe that in such situations people become more creative. I shared the idea with my girlfriend, who also thought it was a cool thing and encouraged me. I think it all worked out well.

And it's been going on for over 8 years! Can you tell us what the beginnings were like?

It seems to me that in 2015 we were the only scouting network in Poland that was so developed. The biggest clubs had scouting at that time, but there was nothing else. We were the only player on the market trying to show clubs that they can do this. They could have a man living in another province looking for players for them. It could all be structured and not rely on the recommendation of a former player. We wanted to change the face of Polish scouting, make it professional and do it pro bono. We were already using scorecards, which were not very popular in the country at the time, and collecting data on players. We wanted to develop it further. The number of people grew. At one point, we had over 40 scouts all over the country looking for players for us, all on a voluntary basis.

The project has become something of a phenomenon, and not just among football fans. What do you consider to be your greatest success?

The first person to start a serious career thanks to ‘Ty też masz szansę’ was Daniel Smuga. Our project is identified with him. He was the first of these big shots. A boy working in a warehouse near Warsaw found himself at Górnik Zabrze in 12 months and started playing in the Ekstraklasa. He went from the fifth level to the first. A bit of a Jamie Vardy story in England. Uplifting and showing that you can do it. It was very inspiring for the other guys. But there are many more: Arek Maj, Krystian Ogrodowski, Karol Noiszewski, Wiktor Bućko, Krystian Przyborowski, Dawid Burka, Konrad Kargul-Grobla, Jakub Poliński, Dawid Rogalski.... There really are a lot of them and I don't want to leave anyone out. Lots of debuts - in the first, second and third division. Scouting has developed a lot in the last eight years. Practically every club at central level now has a scouting network. I can also boast that many of the people who were involved in 'Ty też masz szansę' are now working for these clubs. Now we are trying to break into foreign markets. To give the boys from the Polish diaspora a chance. There have already been two editions in England, one in Ireland, and we are also thinking about Scotland.

‘Ty też masz szansę’ is a non-profit campaign. Was that always the intention?

Yes. At the same time, we always want to provide a professional environment for the players in the lower leagues. We guarantee them clothing, equipment, balls, professional coaches, a physiotherapist, medical care and insurance. We broadcast a live match whenever possible. We want to give young players the chance to move from their local clubs to bigger academies. To finance the project, we have been using the zrzutka.pl platform since the 4th edition. We use crowdfunding to raise part of the money we need. This is supplemented by funds from sponsors, as we also sell advertising space on the jerseys. The cost of such a game has changed a little over the years, but it is between 5,000 and 10,000 zlotys.

How were the first 3 editions funded?

You had to get started somehow, and the easiest way was to take money from the players. Unfortunately, the first editions had to be paid, which was a bit strange. I've always been a football romantic and I didn't want to charge these young players. That's why I decided to set up a fundraiser on zrzutka.pl. 

For the 13th edition you have decided to launch two fundraising campaigns. One traditionally on zrzutka.pl and the other on 4fund.com. Were the costs higher?

We did two because we had a financial backlog from the previous edition. Sometimes there's a miscalculation, an unforeseen expense or something just gets forgotten. We also needed extra funds because of the higher cost of pitch hire and referees in Ireland. It's good that we did these two fundraisers and were successful in raising enough money.

Very good. In fact, I think the quality of the game was much higher than I expected. Four players have already been sent on trial to Poland. Wexford FC's Jakub Wasilewski to Olimpia Zambrów (3. league), Tomasz Gwizdała to Stomil Olsztyn Academy, Jan Dziedzina to SMS Tychy Academy and Olivier Młostoń to Warta Poznań Academy. Everything went well, the pitch was great and the referees were happy too. Interestingly, they told us after the game that the standard was very high for games in Ireland. At the beginning they thought it was just a youth sparring match. Later, they wondered what it was all about and how it was organised, because they were pleasantly surprised. It certainly shows the strength of the Poles in Ireland. If you put these boys together in a team, I think they could easily compete in the League of Ireland. The only thing is that they need financial support. It is possible, especially if the Polish Football Association takes an interest. There really is potential.

Do you think grassroots initiatives like 'Ty też masz szansę' are a way to develop youth football, or are they a kind of substitute?

This should be initiated from the top by the Polish Football Association. I have talked about it more than once and I have wanted to cooperate with them more than once, because we are one of the richest football associations in Europe and we lack such initiatives. As you know, we have the famous 'Lamo, Amo, Zamo' that President Boniek has often spoken about. These are interesting concepts, of course, but there is a lack of something aimed at players from smaller towns. I am convinced that the Polish Football Association has the resources to organise, for example, one test match a month in each province. I have proposed such a project to them and in my opinion it would not be very costly. To start all this, it would be enough to have an open registration on the Internet. There are a huge number of registrations for 'Ty też masz szansę’'. The Polish Football Association could organise festivals, regular matches and fitness tests. By running such a programme for a few years, a database could be created from all the provinces with the results of these boys. It is then very easy to carry out scouting. We cannot leave out any football centre in the country. Sometimes in really small towns, say 700-1000 inhabitants, there is a football team where you can find a really interesting player. Often these people are not picked up by the system. They have great skills and play in very low leagues. Later, it is too late for them because no one has had a chance to notice them. The Polish Football Association has the resources to do something nationwide. To research, test and analyse this data. That's how it works in England, where Football League clubs have to carry out fitness tests every six months. And they all do the same, whether it's Leeds United or Manchester City, and then they share that information. It would be unthinkable in Poland.

Have there ever been ideas that have not been realised?

Unfortunately, not everything can be done because of time and capacity. We used to have one special idea, but it didn't work out because of the lockdown. We wanted to invite 6 or 8 teams from this youngest category (up to 9-10 years old) and do something that no one has ever done before. To completely change the playing environment for these kids! The idea was that the boys would not play in their clubs. Create a rotation of players and coaches. A team of 6-8 players from different clubs. Put them in a position where they have to find each other and solve problems on the pitch. Re-create the old style of street football. The boys would have to work out tactics and choose roles on the pitch. Something they don't have in the club structures, plus they would come up with a team name, giving them all the freedom to express themselves. The coach would then act as a mentor, giving advice, asking a good question, but not interfering. That was a dream of mine. It was going to be called the TTMSZ Football Festival, but unfortunately the pandemic blocked us and we moved away from the idea. Maybe one day…

Do you have any other plans to expand the project? There have been live broadcasts, maybe some merchandising?

There was an idea to reward people for donating. Create something they would get in return for their support. A cap, a T-shirt, a pen... Something related to the project. For example, if you donate 50 zloty you will get a certain item from us, if you donate 100 zloty you will get something else. This could be more tempting and interesting for people who want to support our fundraising efforts.

You already have some experience with crowdfunding. Would you recommend this type of fundraising to other enthusiasts with a head full of ideas?

Absolutely! I was even thinking of setting up a fundraiser for myself, to further the plans I had for my development and coaching. For example, to raise funds to pay for a week's internship at Croatian Dinamo Zagreb or wherever. I'm afraid the reaction of internet users would be negative, unfortunately, but maybe one day I'll be tempted to do it... In general, I highly recommend making fundraisers. It is a very cool thing.

What would you say to those who are undecided and afraid to take the first step?

Don't be afraid to dream. It seems to me that sometimes we analyse, calculate and think too much. Sometimes you need to follow your intuition and your heart. Act, work and organise everything that comes your way, because life is short. You don't want to regret later that you didn't do something. You have to act. That is the most important thing!

The photos included in the article were taken during the 11th edition of the project (London). Source: "XI edycja "Ty też masz szansę!" - Londyn.

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