Later this week, the group stages of the Champions League and Europa League will be drawn in Monaco. At ESEM we are finalising all aspects of our cooperation with European football clubs and their travel agents for the coming campaign.

How do we prepare for a new European football season? We use the summer months to review the past season, looking back at the various matches we have handled and analyse all aspects of the projects.

The airport arrival (parking, security), the preparations in the team hotel and all related aspects of the club’s stay. The transportation requirements for all delegations, from the team bus and kit van to limousines for club executives and VIPs.

Restaurants, venues and activities for the travelling sponsors and guests of the club, day charter arrangements for supporters, additional training facilities for the teams on the match day, parking arrangements on the night of the match at the stadium, the performance of our multi-lingual project managers and guides, coach and chauffeur drivers.

We then update our guidelines for the hotels, venues, transport companies and our project managers, documenting every aspect of the project, from team bedroom specifics and the number of banqueting staff on duty in the team dining room, to the speed of the hotel Wifi internet and the stand by timings for the team bus at the hotel. We cover all eventualities, every possible requirement and movement.

We also take advantage of the summer months to intensify our research into new hotels, restaurants and locations, as we are always trying to offer our clients fresh options for their stays and activities. We visit new and existing venues, meet the management, view the facilities and prepare as much information as possible, so we can present these to our customers, armed with all the required information, leaving no questions unanswered.

We freshen up our presentations and proposals, update the images of new facilities and the most important information our clients require when they receive our offer.

We also developed a brand new website this summer, which gives our existing and potential future clients an even more detailed picture of what ESEM offer the football industry, presents the many destinations we have worked in and even includes a couple of fresh videos about our match handling and training camp services.

We art ready for the 2016/17 season. Let ESEM be part of your team.