Dewsbury-Hall and Awoniyi graduate from PFA Business School while still playing

Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Coventry City striker Taiwo Awoniyi are among the 2026 graduates of the PFA Business School, completing further qualifications while continuing their professional playing careers. BBC Sport reported on the graduation ceremony at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium, where current and former players gathered to mark their academic achievements and discuss how they had fitted education around football.

Dewsbury-Hall, 28, completed a postgraduate diploma in global football sport directorship. He told the BBC that he hoped to keep playing for a long time but wanted to continue developing outside the sport's day-to-day demands. The former Leicester City and Chelsea midfielder has not committed to using the qualification in a particular role. Instead, he described it as preparation that could help if an opportunity arises in the future.

For Awoniyi, 29, the course added to an existing degree in business management and another diploma. The Nigeria striker, who moved from Nottingham Forest to Coventry during the summer, said continuing his education fulfilled a promise to his father. He acknowledged that the work required commitment, while arguing that players could find time to study alongside their football responsibilities.

The programme is organised to accommodate those responsibilities, with seminars scheduled to limit conflicts with training and matches and scope for players to study independently. Dewsbury-Hall described working on an iPad during journeys back from away fixtures. The course also brings in figures from football administration, including Brighton chief executive Paul Barber, to explain how different parts of the industry function.

Wycombe Wanderers defender Steve Cook was another graduate highlighted in the report. Having already earned coaching badges, the former Bournemouth captain was returning to formal education for the first time since school as he approached the end of his playing career. His experience illustrated the different starting points of players taking part in the programme.

Former Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta also addressed the gathering, recalling how studying on the morning of the 2021 Champions League final helped occupy his mind before the match. He told BBC Sport that education could support players during their careers as well as afterwards. Having retired at the end of last season, he said he would take his time before choosing his next role.