A University of the West of Scotland alumnus has been appointed Head of Performance at AC Sparta Prague.
Ian Coll, who graduated from the BSc (Hons) in Sport Coaching from UWS, has joined Sparta’s first team staff under head coach Brian Priske. The 44-year-old Scottish specialist brings extensive experience from clubs such as Celtic FC, Ludogorets Razgrad, and Hajduk Split.
Ian commented: “A real honour and pleasure to join AC Sparta Prague, a very proud moment for me personally and a real culture of professionalism and family at the club.”
“My time at UWS was the springboard for my current career. I know that the university is growing and expanding the Sport Science degrees to a high level.
“Being a lecturer previously at the university, covering the Human Performance module, also gave me an insight into the great work at the university regarding the depth of each degree.”
After gaining his first professional experience with Airdrieonians (then Airdrie United) in the Scottish lower leagues, he joined Celtic FC’s academy in 2009. He progressed through the club’s youth structures before stepping up to the first team four years later.
In September 2013, he was promoted to First Team Sport Scientist, responsible for GPS and database analysis, player development, and bridging the gap between development of the reserve team squad. In February 2015, he became Head of Sports Science. During his time with the first team, Celtic consistently won domestic titles and competed in both the UEFA Champions League and Europa League group stages. He also worked under managers Ronny Deila and Brendan Rodgers.
After a break, which he spent in Dubai, Ian returned to the professional football in April 2018 with Bulgarian champions Ludogorets Razgrad. “They offered me a fantastic project I couldn’t turn down,” he said at the time.
In 2021, he joined Universitatea Craiova in Romania before moving to Hajduk Split, where he reunited with Lithuanian coach Valdas Dambrauskas. Ian celebrated two Croatian Cup titles during his time at Hajduk.
He also gained further international experience in Bulgaria with Botev Plovdiv and in the United States with Las Vegas Lights FC in the USL Championship. Between these roles, Ian visited Prague, where he delivered lectures to Sparta’s first team and academy staff at the invitation of Christian Clarup.
Athletic Club Sparta Praha is more commonly known as Sparta Prague and is the most successful club in the Czech Republic. Sparta have won a record 38 domestic league titles and plays at Prague’s Epet Arena, also known as Letná Stadium.
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