Brandon works at Villarreal Football Club as the Assistant Director of the International Department. We asked him about his work, the tasks he assigns to interns, and his experience of being a supervisor for our Euroace interns. See what he has to say below…

1. Where are you from?

I was born in Arizona, USA but raised in Spain. I have lived in Valencia for almost 20 years and the last year of my university degree I went to the USA to finish my studies. I then moved to England where I worked in London for more than 4 years. After that I moved back to Spain around 3 years ago, and since then I’ve worked for Villarreal CF.

2. What does your company do and what is your position at the company?

Villarreal CF is a top football club in LaLiga, founded almost 100 years ago. I work in the International dept. at the club, supporting the Director as we expand the club internationally. I manage various operations with over 14 different countries worldwide.

3. What type of work do your interns do? (Sports marketing, media, etc.)

It is very varied. Our company operates in an industry that requires a wide range of professional profiles: marketing, communications, logistics, finance, business, sports, design … Interns mainly support us in the expansion of the club overseas and there is lots of work to do!

They research markets, develop communication strategies, support the commercial team, design brochures and film/ edit videos for promotional and informational materials. It really depends on the current needs of our department, the intern’s skills and their academic background. A cool thing that interns enjoy at Villarreal is watching professional players during their training sessions and gaining access to LaLiga home games. A unique and very rare opportunity!

4. Have you ever had an intern become a full-time employee?

Yes, we have had a couple of interns who have joined the team. Part of the process of an internship is that if there’s a job opportunity and the intern meets the requirements (skills, background etc.) then he or she can be a serious candidate. When interns work hard, are committed and can add new ideas to the team, this only benefits themselves and it can contribute to our vision when opportunities arise.

5. How do you decide exactly what each intern will specifically do with your company? 

Since every student is different, it’s important to have a conversation with each of them once they arrive. At the start of the internship I do an orientation. We sit down with the students and explain what we are doing, what the company expectations are, then ask questions about themselves and what their expectations are. Based on this we try to match their technical skills and academic background with what their work at the internship is going to be.

6. What do you enjoy most about working with interns?

I would say my favorite part is to meet people from all parts of the world. There is always someone that surprises you. Every week I learn new things about different cultures. For example, these past few weeks we’ve worked with Korean students and I’ve learnt so much about their culture. Recently, we had a young intern from the USA who had many questions and it was surprising for me because it was her first time here in Spain so everything was different for her here. Things that we take for granted but meant a new world for her.

7. What do you think the interns get out of their international intern experience in Valencia?

A once in a lifetime experience. I’ve met many interns in the past few years and the common phrase is “these have been the best weeks of my life”. Valencia offers a unique city, open to the international community, with great gastronomy, excellent weather, a safe environment and tons of fun activities to do beyond your internship.

8. How would you rate your overall experience working with Euroace to provide your company interns?

It is fantastic. The difference between Euroace and other companies is how they actually take care of the students, they really do care about how their stay here in Spain is, they take care of every little detail. I think that it is very genuine and that it gives you the sense of the human quality of the people you are working with.

For more information on our Internship Placement Sectors, take a look at our website.