When Diane Tumutoneshe got an opportunity to further her sports management studies in 2019, she knew for a fact that it was just the beginning of her dream.

The 31-year-old, a bachelor’s degree graduate in environmental studies from the University of Lay Adventist of Kigali, has been working with Dream Team football Academy (DTFA) as the Managing Director since 2010.

DTFA is a youth football academy that started a decade ago with the aim of developing champions in football and in life as well.

Although Tumutoneshe was given a managing role because of her passion for sports, she didn’t have enough knowledge of what she was required of. She had to take courses related to her new assignment.

Two years ago, when the opportunity surfaced, she hopped on it by applying for a course in sports management, and as luck has it, she was selected to take up a diploma course at the University of Leipzig in Germany.

Tumutoneshe is now the first and only woman in Rwanda with a diploma in sports management.

She laments that lack of institutions in the country that can provide sports management courses is among the main reasons why few women are interested in taking up such courses.

"For the past two years, the skills I acquired from Germany have enabled me to execute my responsibilities in a professional way than before.”

"Besides, it also expanded my knowledge, which I think will contribute to the development of our organization (DTFA), and the country as a whole,” she adds.

Football, part of her life

Tumutoneshe recalls that when she was a young kid, one of her relatives used to accommodate the women’s team of Rayon Sports at their home. As someone who loved sports; she says, it made her curious to learn more about the team.

After showing interest in finding out what the women were doing, the team captain invited her to watch their match one day. This is marked the beginning of her passion in sports, and football in particular.

Prior to taking the Managing Director’s role, Tumutoneshe volunteered with Dream Team academy, mentoring kids below the age of five.

Moving forward

Tumutoneshe holds an advanced diploma in the management of Olympic sports organizations, which she earned from the International Olympic Committee.

Currently, she is pursuing a master’s degree in sports management from the Institute of Sports Science and Technology (ISST) Pune in India. Due to Covid-19, the programme is online.

By 2025, she targets a doctorate degree in sports management.

She also hopes to continue organizing sports management courses for other sports managers who want to start or expand their knowledge in this area, but lack opportunity to study abroad.

"Management of sports doesn’t only focus on football, it’s sports in the general. My dream is to see Rwanda having more women managers in sporting organizations, federations and associations.”

Tumutoneshe argues until there are enough qualified managers across different disciplines, the country will not realise sustainable growth and development of sports.

About the academy

Tumutoneshe is thankful to Dream Team Football Academy for giving her the platform to make her dreams come true.

Jacques Kayisire, the founder of the academy, says the idea of coming up with academy was to give back to the community by inspiring and training kids to excel in football, and in their academic performance.

He recalls that he set up the facility after some of his former teammates were coming to him for handouts, just because he had a job, which he secured after completing his education, unlike most of his teammates who had not gone to school.

"This pushed me to establish the academy. I felt like this will not only bring young people together in sports, but also, it will be an opportunity to encourage them to take their education seriously.”

Kayisire currently serves as the First Vice President of nine-time Rwandan champions – Rayon Sports football club.