15 April 2008

AFC Ajax have become the seventh Dutch side to implement Scout7's evolving ProScout7 technology.

With a history of sustained success on the field going back over a century, Ajax are not only considered giants in domestic Dutch football, but one of the most successful European teams of all time.

In addition to 29 Eredivisie league titles to their name, the Amsterdam club have the distinction of winning six major European competitions, including three successive European Cups in the 1970's, the 1995 UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup and two Cup-Winners Cups.

They are one of only three clubs, along with Juventus and Bayern Munich, to have won all three major European club trophies in the history of European club competition.

And as they continue to push for glory on the field, the club's recruitment department have made the decision to implement the ProScout7 solution to manage all their international scouting information centrally and securely within their own private club system.

Under the internal management of the club's senior technical staff, twelve of Ajax's scouts from all over the world have begun to input all their player assessments and reports from games they have attended straight into ProScout7, together with lists of personal recommendations they believe fit the club's short term and long term scouting requirements.

In total, five senior management figures at the club, including Head Coach Adrie Koster, have full access to the system to study all the information coming into the club by the scouting team.

Ajax believe that the access restrictions provided by the system, together with the speed to act upon information, have been key benefits in the club's proactive use of the solution.

Ajax's spokesman Miel Brinkhuis explains: "The system allows all our scouts to enter their reports into the same system, but at the same time being restricted to see only their reports.

"This allows us the senior staff to compare and contrast the different opinions of our trusted team of scouts, safe in the knowledge that their opinions have not been shaped by those of others. We can then use these opinions and ratings to ensure we make well thought, formulated decisions during the recruitment process."

He continues: "And with each scout able to enter their reports online, irrespective of where they are geographically, we can access their work immediately after their report has been submitted, enabling us to act to information given to us quickly and emphatically."

In the short time the club have been using ProScout7, the evolving nature of the solution has seen a number of new domestic leagues in Africa being covered in the database, and later this year domestic football in the Middle East will also become available in countries including Iran, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Brinkhuis considers this extension of football coverage enhances the quality of the solution already available to them.

He points out: "I know that one of the best aspects of working with the company is that it is always looking to improve the package provided, both in the depth of player information available and brand new areas in the system which can assist the management of the department.

"The football database provides us with comprehensive coverage of football around the world, not only in Europe, but other vital markets including South America, Asia and Africa."

Ajax's decision to implement ProScout7 means that one-third of all clubs in the Eredivisie are now proactively using ProScout7 technology.

And to ensure all the Dutch clubs using ProScout7 have a comprehensive breakdown of emerging talent in domestic football at their disposal, the Netherlands area of the database has been expanded to include the Jong Beloftencompetitie Eredivisie.

For further information of the depth of day-to-day international coverage in ProScout7 and the benefits the management modules can have at the recruitment department at all professional clubs around the world, contact Scout7's sales team on 0870 757 7717 or sales@scout7.com.