The Premier League footballers studying to become sporting directors
· Yahoo Sports
The scene resembles an Oxbridge graduation ceremony, but those gathered in caps and gowns are in fact Premier League footballers or former players who have won major honours in Europe and around the world.
The 2026 cohort of graduates from the PFA Business School includes Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Coventry City striker Taiwo Awoniyi and a host of well-known figures.
Visit grenadier.co.za for more information.
In the event at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium, Cesar Azpilicueta tells the group how studying on the morning of the 2021 Champions League final helped take his mind off the occasion before he captained Chelsea to a 1-0 win over Manchester City in Porto.
Dewsbury-Hall, 28, travelled by train from Merseyside to London to attend the ceremony and, despite being in the best form of his career, explains why he had completed a postgraduate diploma in global football sport directorship.
The former Leicester City and Chelsea player tells BBC Sport: "I hope I've got a long time left in football. But as a person, I'm always trying to learn and develop away from the pitch. I don't want to stop playing and then just sit around doing nothing.
"This was something that genuinely interested me. Whether I use it in the future, we'll see, but it's always good to do it now rather than wait until you've finished playing.
"If the time ever comes when an opportunity presents itself, luckily I've got something that can help me."
The assembled players are potential leaders in football's future.
Awoniyi, 29, joined Coventry from Nottingham Forest during the summer, and he remains part of Nigeria's squad as they attempt to qualify for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.
The striker has also continued his studies throughout his playing career.
"I've got a degree in business management and another diploma, so this is my third qualification," he says.
Awoniyi's father, Solomon, has previously spoken about his strict approach to education. At times it almost prevented his son from pursuing a career in football, but Awoniyi progressed from the Imperial Soccer Academy to Liverpool before making his name in German football with Union Berlin.
"I say to people I am a quiet dreamer," says Awoniyi, who was born in Ilorin, Nigeria. "I always felt education was important. It was a promise I made to my dad that if I played football, I would keep studying.
"That's what I have done and I am proud of it."
The stereotype-busting footballers
Awoniyi points to the "ups and downs" he has experienced as a footballer, referencing the serious injury he suffered in May 2025 when he was placed in a medically induced coma after rupturing an intestine in a collision with a goalpost when playing for Nottingham Forest against Leicester City.
To him, it is important to keep improving and to recognise there is more to life than football, which is where the Professional Footballers' Association course comes in.
Awoniyi says: "It's not like a 9-5 job in football. We go in and sometimes finish quite early and, although it's challenging, I think every footballer has time in the evening for something like this business school.
"Of course, it demands a lot from you and it's all about how willing you are to do it. I say to people there are a lot of things that are bigger than football.
"Yes, football is our passion, but we are normal human beings as well and maybe that's something the world doesn't always see."
The graduates certainly appear no different from anyone else celebrating an academic achievement, exhibiting their pride.
Awoniyi has brought members of his extended family to the ceremony, while Dewsbury-Hall seeks out former Everton midfielder Tim Cahill, now working in Qatari football, to discuss the art of scoring goals.
"Obviously there are stereotypes around footballers," Dewsbury-Hall says.
"But in every industry there are smart people and there are people who aren't so smart. You'd be surprised how many intelligent people there are in football.
"Maybe some players just don't want to do things like this, but they easily could. It's just not their passion.
"I'm not saying this is my passion, but it's something I've done to show that footballers can complete these kinds of courses while they're still playing. Who knows where it will lead?"
The course is designed to run alongside a football career. Seminars are scheduled to minimise clashes with matches and training sessions.
Players can study in their own time, although Dewsbury-Hall says he has had some "weird looks" while studying on an iPad during journeys home from away games.
Every graduate has a different story.
For Wycombe Wanderers defender Steve Cook, who captained Bournemouth in the Premier League earlier in his career, the course marked a return to formal education for the first time since his school days. Having already obtained coaching badges, he knows he is approaching the end of his playing career.
Some may not actively use their newly gained expertise for many years. All will benefit in some way, though, believes Azpilicueta.
"It's not only about preparing for life after football. It's about becoming a better version of yourself in your football career as well," the former Spain defender, who retired from playing at the end of last season, tells BBC Sport.
Education has been part of his life and is what helped him become a leader on and off the pitch.
Azpilicueta built a career after turning professional with hometown club Osasuna at the age of 17.
He had continued studying until that point and, after abandoning his degree when he became a professional footballer, he later returned to complete an MBA at Harvard University in the United States during his nine-year spell at Chelsea.
The desire to study before playing the biggest match of his club career, Chelsea's Champions League final triumph five years ago, indicates how he balanced his two interests.
"Normally I'd have a nap after lunch if the game was later in the day, but that day it was impossible. You could hear the fans and you knew a big game was coming up. Having my studies also helped me focus and improve myself away from football," he explains.
After ending his playing days with Atletico Madrid and Sevilla, Azpilicueta says he will not be rushing into his next role.
The PFA course includes sessions from prominent figures, such as Brighton chief executive Paul Barber, designed to help students understand how different areas of the football industry operate.
For now, many remain focused on playing football. But among this year's graduates might be future coaches, executives and sporting directors who go on to influence the game in different ways.