More than 90 participants from across Europe joined the IN-FORMS European Online Conference on 3 November 2026, making the event a successful opportunity to share research, practical resources and new approaches to employment in sport.
Under the title “Building a Sustainable Sport Workforce: New Approaches to Sport Employment”, the conference explored how the sector can address recruitment and retention challenges and support more stable, rewarding careers.
Esmee Pappot, Policy advisor at WOS (Werkgevers in de Sport) presented the opening keynote, focusing on collective agreements, social dialogue and their role in supporting the professionalisation of the sport workforce.
From research findings to practical resources
Wojciech Waśniewski, EOSE Projects & Research Coordinator, presented the project’s research findings and recommendations, including an overview of the most promising non-traditional employment practices such as employee sharing, platform work and intermittent permanent employment.
Participants were then introduced by Corentin Bonnegent, EU project coordinator at FNPSL (France) to the IN-FORMS roadmaps – guides to the usage of the three forms, an online toolkit for sport employers and workes, and the initiative to develop a network of national employment innovation experts . The practical tools created through the IN-FORMS project are now freely available for the benefit of the sport sector.
A case study from the Portuguese Swimming Federation (FPN), presented by Luis Coutinho, Project Managet at FPN, illustrated how an employee sharing scheme – coordinated recruitment, employment and technical support can help clubs and municipalities access qualified professionals.
Aurélien Favre, EOSE Executive Director closed the conference: “We would like to warmly thank all IN-FORMS partners and speakers for their contributions, and particularly WOS for organising and successfully delivering the conference. Thank you also to everyone who joined and contributed to the discussions.”
ACCESS PROJECT RESOURCes
Sport organisations, employers and workers can continue exploring the project’s resources:
European Research Report — evidence on employment challenges and the usage of innovative approaches in sport (available in English).
Policy Recommendation Paper — recommendations for strengthening sport employment targeting various types of stakeholders in the sector (available in 10 languages).
Practical roadmaps and project resources — guides to practical usage of employee sharing, platform work and intermittent permanent employment (available in 3 languages).
IN-FORMS Toolkit for Sport Employers and Workers — an online tool to explore employment options suited to the users’ needs and priorities (available in English; more languages to come).
IN-FORMS Partnership
Mr Wojciech Waśniewski – EOSE Projects & Research Coordinator – Click here
