Football
Features
Lower league football | Exeter City’s turbulent past equips it to cope with Covid-19 crisis
English lower league club Exeter City's personal commitment to commercial partners has put the club on solid ground during the Covid-19 crisis. Callum McCarthy speak to club chairman Julian Tagg about the club's journey thus far and the hard road ahead.
‘Stop broadcasting, start interacting’ | The importance of digital engagement during sport’s shutdown
Adam Nelson speaks with a range of experts from across the digital space about how rights-holders and clubs can utilise digital content to both engage fanbases and provide a platform for their sponsors during the Covid-19-mandated shutdown.
New York City FC feels ‘pain’ of stadium saga after being forced to play at Red Bull Arena
NYCFC CEO Brad Sims talks to Bob Williams about the MLS club's long-running search for a building of their own and why uncomfortable interim steps have happened
USL celebrates 10th season, aspiring to be a global top-10 league
Ahead of its 10th season, which kicks off this weekend, the United Soccer League has taken numerous steps to bolster its commercial structure to help prepare for another decade of growth. Bob Williams reports.
Centralisation of archive allowed Fifa to offer matches free says commercial chief Thomas
Fifa’s chief commercial officer Simon Thomas has said the decision by the governing body to take its audiovisual archive services in-house has enabled it to offer more than 30 historic matches free of c…
Nike postpones Euro 2020 national team kit launches as contracts scrutinised
Nike’s launch of Euro 2020 national team kits for England, France and three other European countries were postponed this week because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Serie A 2018-19 revenues hit €2.7bn after media-rights increases
Italian football’s Serie A registered a 13.5-per-cent increase in revenues during the 2018-19 season, in part thanks to improved media-rights revenues.
Ekstraklasa launches FIFA 20 competition in Covid-19 response
Football’s Polish Ekstraklasa has launched an esports competition as it looks to engage fans in the absence of live sport during the Covid-19 pandemic.
CFA regulations create casualties on Chinese football clubs’ hard road to sustainability
The Chinese Football Association’s tough line on football club finances has cooled spending at the top level and is pushing lower-tier teams toward oblivion. Chen Yaolin reports.
Fifa declares mission accomplished at Caf, but which mission?
Fifa's six-month takeover of the Confederation of African Football was promised to result in better governance and financial controls. Callum McCarthy investigates whether CAF can be trusted to deliver on those promises without supervision.
Nashville SC eager to make up for lost time in MLS after overcoming stadium setback
Bob Williams takes a look at the developments in Nashville since the city was awarded a Major League Soccer expansion team in December 2017, and the challenges faced during this period.
BT’s ‘Beyond Limits’ rebrand informs CSR-focused partnerships with Home Nations FAs
The telecommunication company’s 2019 rebrand saw it move toward a focus on community and social engagement, something it is intending to carry through into its lead partnerships of all four UK football associations.
CAS pro/rel ruling raises questions over Fifa’s reluctance to force initiative in US
For many years now, the issue of introducing promotion and relegation into the structure of US soccer has been one of contention. Bob Williams explores what is happening at the moment.
Will Fifa’s cap on commissions curb agent ‘excesses’?
Fifa’s proposals to cap agent commissions has set it on a collision course with some of the most powerful agents in world football. In this explainer, Ben Cronin outlines the reasoning behind the reforms and the legal arguments for and against them.
Exclusive | Jorge Mendes: Why agents are ‘an essential part of football’s market dynamics’
SportBusiness speaks to Jorge Mendes about his role as a football agent and how it has developed.
Atlético Madrid looks to CPL team to expand the club’s brand in North America
Spanish club Atlético Madrid recently acquired Canadian Premier League expansion team Atlético Ottawa. Bob Williams looks at how the LaLiga giants hope to use this move to expand its presence overseas.
Wolves turns to Ipsos’ retail monitoring to understand the customer journey
Why Premier League side Wolves has engaged Ipsos Retail Performance's footfall-counting technology in its club megastore.
Former Fifa and CFG executive Johnson bullish as he starts FFA tenure
With top sponsors jumping ship, Football Federation Australia’s new CEO James Johnson faces a tough start to his new role. But there is confidence he has the know-how to turn things around. John Duerden reports.
Minamino signing helps Liverpool on long road to catch United in Asia
Signing Japanese international Takumi Minamino will be a boon for Liverpool's commercial activity in Asia, but the club's strategy to become number one in the region goes beyond a single signing. John Duerden reports.
Malaysian FA pushes club privatisation but weak revenues mean state support is here to stay
Malaysia’s football clubs are to be formally privatised this year, but the journey from state support to self-sufficiency looks fraught, with questions over the future of broadcasting and sponsorship revenues. John Duerden takes a closer look.
Dan Haddad | Liverpool takes a chance on Nike in search of sales growth
Dan Haddad, head of commercial strategy at Octagon UK, looks at the potential upside for Liverpool in opting to switch kit supplier rights from New Balance to Nike.
Ajax’s Champions League run boosts visibility, but growth is underpinned by creative commercial team
Ajax's global popularity outstrips all of its domestic rivals, allowing the club to position itself as a brand platform for the Netherlands and beyond. Its chief commercial officer, Menno Geelen, tells Adam Nelson about the effects of Ajax's surprising run to the Champions League semi-finals, and how a creative commercial department has helped the club compete at the highest level.
Young, gifted and Parisian: why PSG means more than football to global youth
PSG wants the same kind of brand cachet as baseball’s New York Yankees or Italian motor racing team Ferrari. Frank Dunne reports.
Unsuccessful initial tender raises questions over K-League’s domestic media strategy
Pooling media rights to Korea’s K-League with national-team matches was supposed to create a property more valuable than the sum of its parts. John Duerden investigates why it isn’t working yet.
A 2021 Club World Cup can deliver on both Chinese and Fifa ambitions
Why Fifa has chosen to host the 2021 Club World Cup in China, and how the competition is a step forward towards China's football ambitions. Zhang Dan reports.
João Félix, Ryan Giggs and Miralem Pjanic set for the Dubai Globe Soccer Awards as Best Partnership Award makes debut
João Félix of Atlético Madrid Will be joined by football legends Ryan Giggs and Miralem Pjanić on stage at the 11th edition of the annual Dubai Globe Soccer Awards, organised in partnership with Dubai Spo…
Football and Rocket League: A burgeoning relationship on the rocks
Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and AS Monaco have all invested in Rocket League esports, but the business case for doing so is shaky at best. Callum McCarthy examines an esport with huge, unfulfilled potential.