Exclusive: Hibs in Rome as networking summit involves player trading talks and more with football's elite

Hibs are going to be joining some of the biggest clubs in the world at a summit in Italy.

Hibs are one of many Scottish clubs who use the TransferRoom tool.

They are making connections with clubs around the world - and Hibs hope their work with an innovative football platform can open new doors on and off the park.

It's an exciting time at Easter Road. With Bill Foley's minority stake in the club sealed, fans have been left intrigued by what will come next amid fresh investment. Transfers will be a primary thought of some supporters but through platforms like TransferRoom, Hibs will also look to take advantage of connections that can give them an added edge that goes beyond new stars.

Since TransferRoom's launch in 2017, the platform has helped facilitate more than 4,500 transfers. More than 750 clubs from 60-plus countries and 100-plus leagues are involved, including some of the world's biggest and best. They tell club decision-makers which players are available and what other clubs are looking for, enabling them to communicate directly through a messaging system.

More than 300 clubs and over 50 agencies from around the world will be at TransferRoom Summit in Rome this week, including Hibs, who will be represented by head of football operations Derek White and head of technical recruitment Calvin Charlton. Rangers, Motherwell, Hamilton Accies, Partick Thistle and Ross County will be other SPFL clubs in attendance alongside giants like AC Milan, Arsenal, Porto, Man Utd, Sevilla and countless others from around the globe. While transfers are a key focus of the summit, for White who's role is centred around club operations, it's a major chance to assess what connections Hibs can forge away from the pitch too.

"We have had a lot of success," White told the Edinburgh Evening News. "That doesn't always mean we have signed a player. TransferRoom is the initial opening of doors whereby it's an easy, quick way to make communication with teams. For us, it's not success in that we have signed player X from TransferRoom.

"There's a number of other moving parts that go into it but we have had real success out of opening doors to other clubs we perhaps wouldn't have spoken to previously, or opened our doors to markets we wouldn't have spoken to previously. Success for us is opening doors to new markets to make sure we are spreading ourselves as far as we can across the globe.

"We'll be going to the summit on a couple different fronts. One is player trading and the loan market. Some of the bigger clubs, the loan market and what that can open for us. The other hand is creating new relationships with clubs we have never spoken to before. The other aspect is there are a lot of agencies that attend. We will get to know agents, what players they have available, letting them know how we work.

"Take the player out of it, there's an element of general best practice. Whether that be from football strategy, processes, structures, facilities, whatever that may be, but there is a wide range of people there. It's not purely a recruitment conference.

"What can we learn from these clubs on best practice and we can learn something from every club there, not just the big ones, everybody is there we can take something they do and say that sounds like it could work. There's a number of different fronts but the key one is opening those doors. It's creating those relationships so post-conference, they can be worked on."

In the post-Brexit world, more and more clubs clubs and players are seeing Scotland as an ideal development ground, with routes to England harder to obtain. TransferRoom founder and CEO Jonas Ankersen tells the Edinburgh Evening News that SPFL sides have found success in marketing themselves as such.

"Scottish clubs have utilised TransferRoom well to market themselves as a preferable opportunity for foreign players," he explained. "They are able to quickly scan through relevant players from different emerging markets using our search tool and get in contact with decision makers from clubs and agencies worldwide.

"Clubs are able to share their requirements with the market in real time and receive relevant players pitched to them that are matched against the club's requirements. Clubs are alerted in real time when a player on their shortlist is made available.

"TransferRoom allows decision-makers to share information with other clubs and agents at the touch of a button. So trading around the world has never been easier. Clubs at all levels can now work together and this levels the playing field significantly. Previously, it was maybe only the big clubs who could afford a network of scouts and staff that could reach most corners of the football world."

White believes that Hibs can look to tap into the potential of attracting more interest in Scottish football. Perhaps most importantly, the game as a whole is being viewed in a more favourable light, with platforms such as TransferRoom only likely to grow in popularity.

"I think it is something that has gone under the radar to some degree, we have the exceptions panel and compared to England who don't have the exceptions panel," explained White. "I think they have two wildcards. But in terms of getting players into Scotland, it's a little bit easier.

"What I would say is that people are respecting the Scottish football a bit more. The eyes are a bit more in a positive light than they previously were. I think people are seeing the Scottish market as one to tap into, both from sending players to develop and improve them, but to also buy players and pick these kind of players up. We just need to try and harness that, in and out the way.

"I think clubs work extremely closely together off the pitch on a number of things. I think events like this are really beneficial for a number of reasons. This is the way football should be going. We should be willing to collaborate with each other, willing to work with each other off the pitch so everybody benefits."