Business of Sport’s Post

At the heart of our sports marketing industry lies the opportunity to not just drive commercial return but also do the right thing. To champion clubs embodying equity, sustainability, and community engagement. Clubs like Lewes Football Club. This club's commitment to equal pay and fan ownership inspires; it's a call to action. As many get ready to face some of the unknown challenges that might potentially be brought by NewCo's restructuring of England's top women's leagues, the challenge ahead is for brands and partners to collaborate and provide 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 for these pioneers. Together, you can help contribute to a more inclusive and equitable future in sports. https://lnkd.in/eCXN3G6W #SportsMarketing #EquityInSports #Sustainability #CommunityEngagement #sport #marketing #brand #partnerships #brandidentity #brandpurpose #sponsorship #sportsmarketing #athlete #athletemarketing #smallbusinessmarketing #startups 

An interesting read for those who follow #MUFC and those interested in #sportsbusiness. Speaking with Fortune Magazine. More to come on the MUFC deal from the perspective of Football Finance Professionals soon. Watch this space. #footballfinance #footballfinanceprofessionals

The day New England Sports Ventures - now FSG - completed their takeover of Liverpool, the club was in the Premier League relegation zone after 6 matches. It took the best part of 8 years before the club was in a position to consistently challenge for the league title, and 10 before they'd ended the club's drought. The challenge facing INEOS and Manchester United's new leadership is arguably even greater, despite a marginally better league position six games into this season. According to Twenty First Group's World Super League model, Liverpool were the 13th best team in the world at the point of FSG's takeover and needed to improve their underlying win probability by 23 percentage points in order to be competitive at the top of world football. Today, Manchester United are 35th in our rankings and require a 29 percentage point improvement to reach the level of Manchester City and Arsenal. Financially Man United have an head start over what Liverpool had: their revenues are about 10-15% shy of the world's top clubs compared to Liverpool having a 30-40% shortfall. But United have been desperately inefficient with their spend over multiple years; in the ten years since Sir Alex Ferguson's departure the club spent 83% more than Tottenham Hotspur only to win the same number of points. That inefficiency can take years to correct, as it often manifests in the form of overpaid talent on long contracts and a lack of spending headroom in Premier League and UEFA regulations. Fundamentally the levers United have to pull is to get more out of their existing players (predominantly through coaching) and identify better players for the same or less money (predominantly through recruitment, but also through the academy). Based on our models, and recognising that this is both a simplification and that these factors can be hard to entangle, it is reasonable to suggest that about half of the improvement that FSG realised at Liverpool were through the former, and half through the latter. This gives United a starting point for their medium and long-term strategy. Decisions must be made in the context of an understanding of the impact they are likely to have. Improvements are also unlikely to come in a straight line. Liverpool had a false dawn in 2014, and by 2015 they were 28th in the world in our rankings. United will undoubtedly suffer setbacks on their journey too, but a full understanding of the task ahead and what it takes to win will make it just that little bit easier.

It's time to talk #Netball... As last week's breaking news about the Netball Super League settles down, it's worth examining the numbers behind one of the fastest growing sports in the UK. Reducing the number of franchises has caught the headlines, but is a smart move for the next step in the professionalisation journey. 📈 11% increase in crowd attendance across Super League clubs & record breaking crowds at top billing events. 📺 53% increase in viewing figures across SkySports with a surge in female audiences. 🏐 Anecdotally (take this from a netball Dad), participation is up, & standards across the England Netball club, regional & national game is unreal (the recent u14s club finals a huge highlight for my daughter taking to court again). 🥁 The investment opportunities are significant & commercially the game must be on the brink of something very special. If the strategy is right, watch the sport take off 🚀 . I've watched the commercials with a keen eye & can't wait to continue unpicking the data, examining the financial statements, & hopefully seeing the national game, & franchise system, go from strength to strength. There are plenty of challenges ahead, but the sport is in a strong place. 🏆 Big congratulations to the team at Onside Law (especially Harriet Leach) for guiding the #NSL through the legal aspects of the new competition, its #governance, #regulation, #finance, #data, #mediarights & more - I feel a guest speaker invitation heading your way soon! 🚀 Activate the next step in your senior leadership journey with VSI Executive Education & support the game go from strength to strength. 📩 admin@vsiee.com #VSI; Pioneering tomorrow's leaders in sport. Amy Tilley Mark Foster Claire Nelson Eboni Beckford - Chambers Jane Abbey https://lnkd.in/ej6c5wxA

The total number of clubs involved in multi-club ownership has grown 30% in the last year and a half, in turn having a knock-on effect when it comes to recruitment strategies, player development and game philosophies. Read our article on the current trends in global football to learn more about the impact of multi-club ownership and the future implications it may have. #football #wyscout

The Los Angeles Aztecs are seeking a partnership with a city in Los Angeles County to own and operate the team in the National Soccer League (NSL). This Request for Proposals (RFP) invites all cities within the county to submit proposals that demonstrate their capability and interest in supporting this exciting venture. There will be no franchise fee, and cities will have a clear ownership capital table, owning at least 51% of the team, ensuring it serves as a valuable community asset. Additionally, there is potential for the construction of a soccer-specific stadium. Soccer’s popularity in the United States is surging, particularly with the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup and over 80 million Americans now expressing interest in the sport. The NSL views its clubs as community assets, an asset class that has historically outpaced the S&P 100 in terms of value appreciation. The Los Angeles Aztecs, with a storied history in professional soccer, aim to re-establish their presence in the NSL and are looking for a city partner to provide a supportive environment for the team’s home games, training facilities, and community programs. This partnership aims to enhance local sports culture and promote economic development. https://lnkd.in/g6ZvsYQK

Through long-term strategies, small football clubs can outperform bigger ones: • Sporting & Business Success: Clubs aim for sporting success to satisfy stakeholders and secure business achievements. • Team Value Management: Increases in team value come from developing first-team players, integrating youth players, and excelling in player trading. • Budget Efficiency: Clubs with effective budget management, like Real Sociedad and Atalanta B.C., outperform those with larger budgets. • Decision-Making Quality: About 50 sport management decisions annually influence a club’s ability to translate budgets into quality teams. https://mck.co/49vTrN3 #football #players #soccer

Winning is crucial in football. But club identity is just as important. Sebastian Kehl on dealing with competitive disadvantages as Borussia Dortmund sporting director: "There are new players on the market, Newcastle has invested an incredible amount of money, as has Milan. Paris anyway." "We have had to for a long time time to deal with these challenges. We need the Champions League every year for economic reasons, and we won't accept that we simply put ourselves behind in terms of sport." "Yes, we have competitive disadvantages compared to clubs that have billionaire owners or entire countries behind them. We have to earn our own money and we will always have to make sure that we also sell players." "Of course we would have liked to keep a Jude Bellingham when you see the mark he can already make on Real Madrid. Nevertheless: We want to play an important role in Europe." "We can no longer compete in some transfer and salary areas, we have to accept that and draw our conclusions from it. We have to be more creative, braver, sometimes sign players for free and possibly bring in young players even earlier." "You then logically take more risks. One example is Julien Duranville, who is still growing, but unfortunately he is currently struggling with injuries again and again. We are building him up carefully and believing in him, but that's what it takes. Time." "It will also be courageous to bring talents up from the youth academy again so that we can benefit from our work there. It's not an easy task for the entire club and its employees to feel like they have to justify coming second every year." "We all have the right to achieve something upwards and become German champions again. We will be able to break Bayern's dominance at certain points." "In the end, you still have to make it so that people's motivation and satisfaction do not solely depend on first place or a title because this race that we want to win is, from an economic point of view, an unequal one." "Regardless of the fact that we should have won the last one." "It will be important to make the stadium experience something special, to always offer exhilarating football. We can also just be proud of having had top stars like Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham in our own ranks and having developed them." "Beyond titles, other facets that simply make this club special. And we still have those and more. Being special just because you are first cannot be our approach. Because that will not always be successful." [Kicker] 📍Each week, I send one email filled with principles that sharp directors use to gain an edge. It's always short [5 minutes or less] and comes every Saturday morning. Join 800+ readers here: https://buff.ly/48Qs0Ob

Is it possible to change a personal brand after 20 years of professional football? 🤔 Gary Neville often speaks about wanting to be known as a quality football pundit and businessman rather than just “ex footballer”… But after playing 400 times for Man Utd, this is a huge reputation shift 🔴⚫️ He now: - Owns a range of businesses in Greater Manchester - Works for Sky Sports as a pundit - Featured on Dragons Den - Owns a football club, University and hotel I can understand why he wants this personal brand change, he feels he has way more to achieve even after his playing days ended ⚽️ After building this business empire, has he finally managed to be known for more than just “ex footballer”? #sportbiz #sportmarketing #personalbranding

In recent years, there has been a notable surge in ownership changes across Europe's "Big Five" football leagues. With the globalization of the football industry, takeover opportunities became open to a wider group and foreign owners are quite common nowadays. The latest Football Benchmark analysis focuses on the foreign controlling owners in the European “Big Five” leagues. Key takeaways from the analysis: ▶ In the 2023/24 Bundesliga, RB Leipzig stands as the sole club controlled by a foreign #ownership, with its majority owner, Red Bull GmbH, hailing from Austria. 🌐 This stands in stark contrast to The Premier League landscape, where only four clubs (Tottenham Hotspur FC, Luton Town FC, Brentford FC, Brighton & Hove Albion FC) have controlling owners from the United Kingdom, while the remaining sixteen clubs have at least one foreign entity in their controlling ownership. 🌎 When examining the nationalities of foreign majority owners in Europe's "Big Five" football leagues, it becomes evident that United States-based proprietors hold considerable influence. With 20 controlling owners originating from the USA, it is clear that American investors have become prominent players in shaping the trajectories of these clubs. ▶ Following the United States, China, Saudi Arabia, and Switzerland share the second position on the list, with each country boasting controlling ownership of three clubs. 🔀 Moreover, the diverse representation of 17 nations among foreign owners in the “Big Five” underscores the globalization of European #football ownership. 💡 An intriguing aspect of the #governance structures within Europe's top football leagues lies in the varying sizes of their board memberships. LaLiga takes the lead with an average board size of 8.9 members, indicative of a broader framework for decision-making and oversight. This is in stark contrast with Bundesliga and Ligue 1, both with an average of 4.2 members.