To catch the attention of a football recruiter, a CV must be well-written and professionally presented. Even though your formatting might change according to your industry, there are some basic rules that you can follow which will dramatically increase your chances for success.
We've already discussed some excellent resume layout examples. But here's our list:
Football CV Dos
Keep it brief and to the point. The best CVs are both informative and concise. Keep your CV to the essential points and limit it to two sides of A4.
Use a professional font. A good font makes it easy to read your CV and scan it quickly.
Use clear section headings and sufficient spacing. To keep things simple and easy to read, use a reverse chronological arrangement for education and work experience. Highlight your most recent accomplishments.
Use club logos. Using logos is a great way to add some visual aspects to your football CV and are a great way for a recruiter to see where you have worked in the past.
Your strengths should be highlighted. Your CV should be formatted to maximize the impact of your application. If you feel that your lack of experience is holding back your application, you can start with education. It doesn't matter how you arrange the sections, as long as it is related to the job at hand.
Use bullet points. Bullet points are a great way for hiring managers to quickly scan the document and see the most important facts.
Add contact information: Include contact details and keep your email address professional, if your email is [email protected] consider setting up a new one.
Don't forget Linkedin. Adding your LinkedIn account to your football CV gives the recruiter confidence that your social channels are in order.
Football CV Don'ts
Sometimes less is more. White space is not something to be afraid of. You don't have to worry if your CV seems bare. As long as you include all relevant information and quantifiable accomplishments, as long as you fit the requirements for the role, it's okay.
Do not include too much. Your CV should not be a collection of long list. Your life story should not be included in your CV. It is possible to tailor your CV to fit the role. This will help you cut through the clutter and keep the fluff to a minimum.
Only include relevant information. Ask the same question before you include any points in your application: Will it help me get the job? If you get a negative answer, remove it. Interests and hobbies are great examples.
Do you think a club will give you a job because you have added a picture or you with Alan Shearer or that you had a trial at AC Milan 40 years ago and played with Maldini?
Always send a cover letter. Your cover letter, although it may be seen as an entirely separate entity, is still attached to your CV. Both are essential in helping you secure the job. Your CV will be a powerful tool to enhance your talents if you use it properly. They didn't say to include one. Still do. You should seize every opportunity to market yourself.
Try different sizes. It may seem like changing the font size is a good way to squeeze your CV onto two pages. You're not fooling anyone, whether you use a large font to make the application appear longer or if you use a smaller font to ensure everything fits. Also, see margin size.
Keep it professional. Don't use crazy colours or fonts and include unnecessary references.
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