During my gap year, I worked as Technical Support for LiverpoolFC.tv, a groundbreaking £20m joint venture between Liverpool Football Club and Granada Television. This role gave me the opportunity to be part of something truly innovative - bringing professional football into the digital age at a time when sport online was just beginning to find its feet.

It was an exciting moment. Professional football clubs were just beginning to understand the potential of digital platforms, and LiverpoolFC.tv was at the forefront of this revolution.

(The website team in 2001, posing with the silverware. I'm the kid on the bottom left in the blue jumper, believe it or not.)

How it started

A friend asked if I'd like to help out in the evenings with some tech support work for his new role at the club. What started as evening work quickly morphed into a full gap year job with the brand new LiverpoolFC.tv venture. It was an incredible opportunity and I relished the chance to be useful and get rewarded for it.

The role

Working for LiverpoolFC.tv meant being involved in every aspect of a pioneering digital sports platform:

• Customer support - Looking after subscribers by email, helping them navigate this new world of online football content
• IT support - Providing technical assistance for the team of journalists and e-commerce staff
• Content creation - Creating web advertisements and promotional materials
• Video production - Filming early web videos featuring interviews with the manager and players
• Database management - Building and maintaining systems to support the platform
• General technical support - Helping the team with whatever tech challenges arose

What I learned

The experience provided an excellent education in digital media, customer service, and working in a fast-paced, innovative environment. Key lessons included:

• Versatility - Being willing and able to turn my hand to whatever needed doing
• Customer focus - Understanding that technology is only as good as the experience it creates for users
• Content creation - Early exposure to digital video production and web content
• Technical problem-solving - Supporting both customers and colleagues with emerging technology

Career impact

The combination of technical skills, customer focus, and content creation experience gained at LFC directly influenced my later approach to digital projects. The experience of being part of an innovative digital venture also sparked an interest in how technology can transform traditional industries - a theme that would run throughout my career.