World Football Summit

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Day 3 highlights: Ronaldo, Mata, Popal, Verón and more
Day 3 highlights: Ronaldo, Mata, Popal, Verón and more 1242 565 WFS Live

Day 3 of WFS Live powered by R9 saw former and current football legends take the virtual stage to address both on the field and both the field topics. Rebecca Smith and Khalida Popal discussed the best way for women’s football to tackle Covid-19 and continue its growth path during a panel sponsored by Visa, Juan Sebastián Verón explained how a good education boosted him from the youth teams of Estudiantes to the Chairman’s office in a panel sponsored by Johan Cruyff Institute, whilst Ronaldo and Juan Mata shared their experiences as social activists in a panel sponsored by Santander.

Ronaldo Nazário on how Covid-19 will impact football for good organisations:
“Covid-19 is going to make a big impact on foundations and NGOs because the companies that fund these organisations have suffered a big blow and we know that whenever there is a crisis the first thing they cut is donations. What we have to do as foundations is to find solutions, find ways of proposing new projects. With Fundação Fenômenos we are developing channels and platforms to try to identify where people are suffering most in Brasil and do our best to provide assistance. It’s not what we normally do, but it is what is required. There are a lot of communities in Brasil that have no assistance and we have to provide them with an opportunity to overcome this crisis with dignity.”

Juan Mata on players becoming increasingly involved in social causes
“There are a number of reasons that explain why athletes’ voices are becoming more influential. Social media has become a very important tool for professional footballers and athletes in general, and, as we are seeing with all the young players joining Common Goal lately, players are realising that when you are a footballer you have a very powerful platform. When you state your views, people listen, and a lot of players are starting to use that power to speak up for social causes. I think this is already a trend, and I think that it is going to grow even more in the coming years. More players will realise the power they have to reach people, because in that sense nothing matches the power of sports and football.”

Juan Sebastián Verón (Club Estudiantes) on the need for clubs to ensure their player’s education
“At Estudiantes we use football as a vehicle to educate kids. We receive kids from all types of places, some of them with important needs, and it’s important that we ensure that when they leave they have finished secondary school, which is the minimum needed to get a job. I think that’s what the club has to do, and I think the kids have the right to receive that education. They’re going to invest around 10 years chasing a dream that may never come true. If that happens, I want them to know that the club gave them the chance to finish school and go back home with something. If they get to be players, that will be excellent, but if they don’t make it we want them to have another opportunity in life.”

Tatjana Haenni (Swiss Football Federation) on the need for football organisations to talk less and do more
“If you talk to male players, they are usually super supportive and helpful. If you talk to people in society, they are open to women sports. If you talk to people in the economy they see the benefits as well. It’s developing everywhere, but where we still struggle is in places in which changes could be made immediate and that’s sports organisations. These organisations quite often in my opinion do a bit more talking than actually doing. They could really reinforce the case of women’s sports much quicker and put the right structures in place.”

Toni Ordinas (Lillestrøm Sportsklubb), on how Bepro is revolutionising data analysis in football
“During more than 20 years I had the feeling that I just watched the matches, didn’t analyze the matches. With Bepro this has changed. For the first time I have the chance to see what happens on the pitch, what players do and how they interact. In youth football it’s important that we not just look at the physical parameters but also the fundamentals, this is the most important thing when you are developing a player.”

Mic Conetta (Arsenal FC) on using data to build fan engagement
“Clubs have to balance the amount of information that is available to them and really focus on what part of that information is going to drive and build out that fan experience and nurture and develop the relationship with the fans, because you can go down a lot of rabbit holes chasing a lot of data that won’t deliver much value back to either the club or the relationship with the fans.”

Iván Codina (LaLiga), on how LaLiga kept its fans engaged during the Covid-19 lockdown  
“At the beginning our main focus was definitely to show our commitment with the fight against Covid-19, specially with the dramatic situation that we had in Spain. That was our main focus. After that we were also able to provide content around the protocols for clubs to resume training and the restart of competitions, and also on all the initiatives that our clubs carried out around the restart of LaLiga.”

Ale Xavier (Desimpedidos) on how Covid-19 is forcing media companies to reinvent themselves 
“In the pandemic, more than ever, we need to reinvent ourselves, produce different content related to sports and leverage tools that already existed but we didn’t know how to use. We also need to make the best use of all available platforms.”

Dani Alves (Brasil National Team) on the need to come together to make real impact
“Individual voices don’t make much of an impact. They need to be together and in different parts of the world. All lives matter. We are in 2020 debating about the same things and haven’t evolved yet. We have to position ourselves as humans and not as football players or a sports athlete in general.”

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Experts call for women’s football to receive more investment during the Covid-19 crisis
Experts call for women’s football to receive more investment during the Covid-19 crisis 1237 588 WFS Live

While the coronavirus crisis has impacted sport at all levels, the effects on women’s football have been especially severe and this is why industry experts have called for there to be even more investment in the women’s game than in the men’s game at this time. Given the weaker fundamental structures of women’s football, equal investment wouldn’t even be enough. Instead, the argument is that there’s a need for the authorities to put greater resources into women’s sport.

This was one of the main talking points during the ‘Women’s Sport: The Necessary Steps For A Progressive Future’ panel during WFS Live powered by Ronaldo, which was moderated by Alexandra Gómez Bruinewoud, senior legal counsel at FIFPro. It had Tatjana Haenni, director of women’s football at the Swiss Football Association, Bex Smith, global director of the women’s game at COPA90, Khalida Popal, founder and director of the Girl Power Organisation, and Jorge Garbajosa, president of the Spanish Basketball Federation, as guests.

As Gómez Bruinewoud explained: “At FIFPro, we have been studying women’s football in general, but also we’ve put a little bit more interest on the effects of COVID-19 on women’s football. Of course, as everyone who is interested in football in general and in women’s football in particular, we were really really worried about what would happen. We did some research and what we’re encouraging and suggesting is that actually, in this moment, it’s not enough to say ‘ok, we’ll invest the same in women’s football’, which is not even the case by far anywhere. It should be even more! They need extra support because the structures are weak and the basis is still not there.”

In certain countries, solid structures are in place and Smith raised the positive example of the DFB, the German federation. She said: “I think the structures need to be in the right place. If you have the right structures then a great example of that is what the DFB did with the solidarity fund that the top four clubs then distributed and it actually went to women’s football because that was the equitable thing to do.”

Such a positive example is rare, though, and the panelists agreed with the need for financial backing of women’s sport at this time. “To really convince the last people who are still not seeing the opportunity and the potential, we need some money coming into women’s football and you can actually make a business case, but you need a decent plan,” said Haenni.

It’s not only about financially supporting women’s sport during the times of COVID-19. It’s about doing so at all times. Encouragingly, Garbajosa revealed that the Spanish Basketball Federation were thinking about this issue even before the pandemic and they realised that there was a need to not just fund women’s basketball equally, but to actually allocate a little more to the women’s game.

“We are investing a little bit more in women’s basketball than in men’s basketball,” Garbajosa told the WFS Live audience. “In terms of the commitment of the men’s basketball players with the women, here in Spain in our federation it is 100 percent. When they get a bonus, the bonuses for the men and the women are completely equal. The money that they get for every day that they practice or play games is completely equal also. It’s a matter of being fair because the effort they show on the court every day is the same so they have to get the same from our federation.”

Ultimately, having more women in leading roles will help to bring about the positive changes that are needed and this was another takeaway that the panelists agreed upon. “I think it’s very important to create more job opportunities and educational opportunities for women to gain the skills to be more involved in developing the women’s game, as we need more women,” Popal concluded.

This panel took place during the third day of WFS Live, which is running from Monday July 6th to Friday July 10th. It is still possible to buy a ticket here, with all net proceeds to be donated to Fundação Fenômenos and the Common Goal COVID-19 Response Fund.

Quotes from the ‘Women’s Sport: The Necessary Steps For A Progressive Future’ panel

Tatjana Haenni, on the business case for women’s football:
“I think women’s football is a business case. I think it’s the biggest growth opportunity in terms of participation, sponsorships, partnerships, media partnerships. If you don’t have a proper business plan and investment behind then you just don’t get the results as quickly as you can. If I look at the FIFA Women’s World Cup as an example. It still doesn’t have its own sponsorship packages. It’s not unbundled as far as I know. That might have reasons for it because maybe the contracts are so long that they can’t unbundle it. But, I haven’t really seen a plan. Whereas, at the UEFA level, you see that there are specific sponsors for the Women’s Euros. So, there is the momentum for a commercial business case for women’s football.”

Bex Smith, on the media’s role in setting and defining value:
“Actually, media has an even bigger role to play than just giving visibility. I think that just in the way how media divides the time that women get and men get, that puts a value on it. [It suggests] that men are actually worth more and valued more and that people should then invest more in the men’s side of the game.”

Khalida Popal, on unhelpful comparisons between women’s and men’s football:
“Media has a huge impact on women’s football. It helps women’s football a lot, but we have to also understand that the way some media communicate is wrong. We have to stop comparing women’s football and men’s football. Women’s football is a beautiful product. We have to communicate it and we have to sell the story differently. Most of the media channels are making the mistake of comparing women’s football. That’s why we’re getting hurt in terms of sponsorship deals, in so many ways and also getting fans.”

Jorge Garbajosa, on investing in women’s sport for the right reasons:
“Sometimes, from the men’s point of view, the investment in women’s sport is like a kind of charity. No, it’s not a charity. It’s a strategic pillar of the development, at least in Spain, of our sport. Here, there’s no difference between men or women. Our goal is to develop our sport and one of the main pillars is women’s basketball as we try to reach our goals.”

Alexandra Gómez Bruinewoud, on how some women footballers are more political in the media:
“We’re seeing in women’s football lots of very highly educated women that have a lot to say and probably that’s also connected to how they’re expressing themselves in the media, how they put through strong messages, how they’re a little bit more political if you want to describe it in a word maybe. I think it was, I don’t know if surprising, but something to highlight and pay attention to if we looked at the awards of The Best of FIFA, where Messi won The Best for the male players and Megan Rapinoe for the women players. Then, you looked at their speeches. Without needing to compare them, you see how different they were. Rapinoe was really giving a political stand, whereas Messi was not and was giving more of a personal speech.”

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Day 1 Highlights: Tebas, Sir Martin Sorrell, Desiree Bellia, Butragueño and more
Day 1 Highlights: Tebas, Sir Martin Sorrell, Desiree Bellia, Butragueño and more 1238 583 WFS Live

The first ever edition of WFS Live kicked off today with seven panels featuring top-notch leaders from properties such as LaLiga, FIFA or Real Madrid and companies such as S4 Capital or Eleven Sports. Speakers discussed deeply around the impact of Covid-19 on different areas of the sport and the industry such as European competitions, women’s football, media rights, the transfer market or player’s salaries. Here are some of the main highlights of Day 1:

Javier Tebas (LaLiga), on Covid-19 and the transfer market

“There will be some transfers, but those which each club can manage economically. But big signings paid in money, we’re not going to see that. One of 100 million euros is impossible. And those above 50 million euros, we’ll be able to count on the fingers of your hands and mine.”

Ornella D. Bellia (FIFA) on the lessons learned from Covid-19

“One of the lessons of Covid-19 is that more women leadership positions are needed to help deal with crisis situations. If you look at the countries with some of the best Covid-19 responses, they are countries lead by women. If you look at Germany, but also New Zealand, Iceland… These countries stood out for their prompt, efficient and effective response tu the crisis.”

Ebru Koksal (Women in Football) on the lack of support mechanisms for women in the industry

“I didn’t have a good support mechanism, I didn’t have a mentor, I didn’t have another women in the Board of Directors, I didn’t have anyone to got to, I was all alone. It’s so difficult to survive in that environment because everyone is trying to crush you. It’s very hard to survive unless you have the support mechanisms, but also equally important is having self awareness in your leadership journey.”

Magda Pozzo (Udinese & Watford), on women thriving in innovative areas of the business

“We need to do more as women, we need to create a movement, but I think it’s just a natural development of the business. I think we’re seeing a change with so many innovative areas of the business growing. Areas in which women are very good, so it’s going to come very natural. I’m very positive and very optimistic about that.”

Sir Martin Sorrell (S4 Capital) on the effects of Covid-19 on football

“In my view there are too many football clubs, they have to be consolidated. Players are probably over-remunerated, they will have to be remunerated in different ways. The leagues are going to have to be run more efficiently and professionally because the competition is going to be huge.”

Paul Barber (Brighton & Hove Albion) on Covid-19 being a wake-up call for the football industry

“One of the problems for some years is that clubs have been living beyond their means, they’ve been spending more money than they’ve been bringing in and relying on either player sales to get out of trouble at the end of each season or an uplift in TV or sponsorship income. I think that perhaps this is a wake-up call for all of us to manage our business more prudently that we’ve done in the past. We’re all guilty at some point of just stretching that little bit too far.”

Emilio Butragueño (Real Madrid) on the lessons learned from Covid-19

“The first lesson is that what seems imposible is possible, everything can change overnight. The second is our ability to overcome difficulties. We’ve been able to comeback and we should be very proud. The third lesson is that we have to be united. When we are united, we win. I think these are the three lessons of this period.”

Luigi de Laurentiis (SSC Bari) on the impact of Covid-19 on player salaries

“Salaries will probably be going down around 20-25 percent, which would help. I think overall if we’re talking about big players they will keep their value, but definitely in the shorter period we’re definitely going to see some minor numbers in that department. So yes, I think salaries and transfers will be affected for now.”

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WFS Live kicks off with 150+ speakers and 3,000 attendees
WFS Live kicks off with 150+ speakers and 3,000 attendees 1417 642 WFS Live

Over 150 top-notch speakers will be taking the virtual stage from today, July 6th, until Friday, July 10th, at the first ever edition of WFS Live, a global online event organised by World Football Summit and Ronaldo Nazário that will gather football’s major stakeholders to discuss the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, S4 Capital Executive Chairman Sir Martin Sorrell, LaLiga President Javier Tebas, Real Valladolid President Ronaldo Nazário, ASER Ventures Chairman Andrea Radrizzani, FIFA Referee’s Committee Chairman Pierluigi Collina, Secretrary of the Board of Directors of FC Barcelona Marta Plana, Spartan Race Founder Joe de Sena and football legends such as Vicente del Bosque, Iker Casillas, Didier Drogba, Kristine Lilly, Juan Sebastián Verón or David Villa are just a few of the names included in the stellar lineup.

This online event, in which attendees will be able to engage and interact with speakers through group discussions, live polls and one-on-one video-calls, will gather 450 clubs, leagues and federations, 800+ companies and 3,000 attendees from 120 different countries.

The Conference Porgramme includes all the major topics affecting the sports fraternity, but there will be a special focus on the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic across the different sectors of the industry as well as the opportunities that will arise in the aftermath of the crisis.

All net proceeds to be donated

Sir Martin Sorrell, Magda Pozzo (Udinese Calcio), Paul Barber (Brighton & Hove Albion), Emilio Butragueño (Real Madrid) or Juliano Belletti (FC Barcelona) will be other top speakers taking the stage on the first day.

Apart from kicking off a new beginning for football after the pause forced by Covid-19, WFS Live also aims to help fight the devastating effects that the pandemic has caused on vulnerable communities around the world. That’s why all net proceeds will be donated to Common Goal, charity platform founded by footballer Juan Mata and Fundação Fenômenos, founded by Ronaldo Nazário.

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WFS StartCup: These are the 16 startups pitching at WFS Live
WFS StartCup: These are the 16 startups pitching at WFS Live 2047 1039 WFS Live

World Football Summit and the Global Sports Innovation Center powered by Microsoft (GSIC) have announced the 16 startups selected by the WFS StartCup jury to participate at WFS Live powered by R9. These startups will have the opportunity to pitch their solutions to the global football industry in the online event that will gather 100+ top speakers and nearly 3,000 industry professionals from all over the world from July 6th to 10th.

The StartCup session will take place on Thursday July 9th at 5.00 PM (CEST). The jury will then decide the Top 8 startups that make it to the final stage, which will take place at the next WFS online summit.

The 16 selected startups come from 10 different countries (Brazil, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Netherlands, Qatar, Spain, United Stated and United Kingdom) and offer a wide range of solutions in different fields, although mostly focused on Player & Team Performance and Fan Engagement. Half of them use AI-driven technology.

16 shortlisted startups:

– 4D Sight: AI and cloud-based virtual ad insertion in sports and esports. It creates intrinsic, audience-friendly, targeted ads for great brand sentiment.

– ACE Applied Cognitive Engineering Ltd. / The Football IntelliGym: Improves footballers’ performance by boosting players’ decision-making skills. It provides easy-to-use training software that is scientifically proven to improve actual on-field players’ performance by 20-40% by training an hour a week.

– AiScout: Has developed an Amateur Talent Identification platform, which is using AI, Machine Learning, Data Analytics & in-app Biomechanics, Psychometric & Cognitive Analysis, to automate the Amateur Talent Identification, scouting & trial process.

– Armony Ltd: Claims to be the world’s first, patent-pending, wireless communication system made specifically for the use of soccer teams. This system creates a direct connection between coaches and their players, simultaneously transmitting coaches’ instructions and eliminating the need for coaches to yell to their players.

– BBox Sports: A startup focused on fan engagement. BBox Sports have created an engagement tool that offers real data about real fans. BBox allows sports teams to really know their fans and engage with them in a whole new level through Augmented Reality.

– Beyond Sports BV: Transforms positional tracking data into fully immersive and animated 3D simulations in 16 milliseconds, serving player development, match analysis, broadcasting and multi platform end consumer access across multiple sports.

– Fanisko: It offers a B2B platform & solution that helps sports organizations to: 1) Identify high value fans through data driven campaigns, 2) Engage wherever they are and whatever they use, 3) Retain through Gamification, AR, & VR and 4) Monetize through sponsor activations.

– IDOVEN: Remote digital sports cardiology based on Artificial Intelligence. With the aim of early detection of diseases such as myocardial infarction, sudden death and other heart problems in people and athletes of any level.

– Imagine AR Inc: An industry leader for an augmented reality platform for sports and live events. Its platform can synergistically engage fans in immersive memorable experiences to drive a deeper engagement and create new revenue sources.

– Immersiv.io: A startup working in the field of augmented reality to enhance the fan experience for sports and esports. They rely on the latest innovations (like machine learning, computer vision, real-time data) to design new ways for teams and leagues to engage their audience by sharing immersive and interactive experiences with their fans.

– iSPORTiSTiCS: This company processes, formats and analyze sports content, using technologies based on AI and ML to simplify, enhance and amplify deliveries on the way from the crude content and distributors / audience, increasing all people interactivity and engagement.

– Olocip: Pioneering international company specialised in the implementation of Artificial Intelligence in the business world and professional sports.

– Pico – Get Personal: A SportsTech startup with a personalized fan communication platform, powered by AI. Pico transforms engagement across digital & social channels into high-converting fan experiences that support true business objectives. Pico drives engaged, anonymous online fans into 1st party systems with actionable data via personalization at scale.

– Seyu – Together for victory!: An easy to implement, 150+ events proven, AI assisted solution which is using sport industry partners’ already existing IT infrastructure to allow fans around the world, through a moderated channel, to post their photos on to the LED boards and other screens in the stadiums on matchdays, and share them instantly on social media in branded frames.

– Sponix Tech: A technology company that provides solutions and services which helps broadcasters, TV channels and advertisers increase viewers and enhance fan experience. Their end-to-end creative service covers the entire video production process, from developing an initial concept, through to offering a full service of pre-production, filming and post-production.

– Sport Buff: An innovative fan-driven company that truly combines sports broadcast, digital/ social fan engagement and live sports datacasts to create a truly unique business and product, delivering the best-in-class next generation of sports fan viewing, engagement and gamification, powered by AI and Machine Learning. 

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Paul Barber: “For most of the industry to be losing money every year is clearly an unsustainable model”
Paul Barber: “For most of the industry to be losing money every year is clearly an unsustainable model” 2560 1440 WFS Live

Paul Barber is the Chief Executive of Brighton & Hove Albion FC and will be one of the speakers during the WFS Live powered by Octagon, which is taking place from July 6th to July 10th. We recently caught up with him to talk about the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead fort the football industry in the post-Covid era.

Q. You’ve been in the football industry for over 25 years, do you recall any crisis similar to the one we are currently facing due to the Covid-19 pandemic?
A. No, this is by far the worst crisis for the football industry.

Q. Which have been the major challenges that you’ve had to overcome, personally and professionally, in the past months?       
A. Similar to most people; concerns for people’s health; financial concerns for our business; and general uncertainty.

Q. As a chief executive of a large business, how have you managed to balance the financial pressure of having to get back to business as soon as possible and the huge responsibility of taking care of the well-being of the club’s players, employees and fans?
A. Health must come first. Then it’s about being adaptable, flexible and pragmatic. We’ve tried to be open and transparent to all stakeholders at all times.

Q. Although football is restarting it seems clear that it’s going to be a TV only entertainment for quite some time, meaning that there will be no match-day revenue at least until 2021. How is Brighton preparing to face this unprecedented situation?
A. We’ve taken action to halt major projects and to reduce costs where we can. We’re also lobbying to get fans back in as soon as it is safe, even on a phased basis.

Q. This crisis has proved that clubs rely too much on match-day income and media rights and that if football is to continue growing there is a huge need to explore other revenue streams. Where do you think these new revenue streams can be found considering that investment in sponsoring is also likely to decrease since most industries have been seriously hit?
A. In my experience, clubs have always looked to build new and more sustainable revenue streams. Achieving this while maintaining focus on core objectives is challenging.

Q. A couple of months ago, Brighton Chairman Tony Bloom said he wished Covid-19 “sparks a change in football’s broken financial model”. Do you agree? Which would you say should be the most urgent changes?
A. For most of the industry to be losing money every year is clearly an unsustainable model. We need to be prepared to manage our cost base – player salaries – far more robustly to reverse the model. This is easier said than done in a competitive industry that relies on the best talent.

Q. Changing the financial model will undoubtedly take some time. In the meantime, how do you think this crisis is going to reshape the football landscape and what do you think will be the main consequences?
A. This crisis has shaken all of us. We need to ensure our contracts are more resilient for the future, and we need to ensure we have better protection in our contracts.

“We need to ensure our contracts are more resilient for the future, and we need to ensure we have better protection in our contracts” – Paul Barber

Q. We’re focusing a lot on the challenges, but obviously there will also be opportunities arising. From where we stand today, which do you envision?
A. The obvious one is to learn the lessons of the past 3 months – there are many!

Q. You are going to be one of the key speakers at the upcoming WFS Live powered by Octagon along with a number of global leaders across the industry. How do you think a gathering like this can help football at this moment and what topics and issues are you most looking forward to discussing?
A. It’s always good to share views and opinions, there is much to learn from colleagues.

Q. At WFS Live we believe this crisis can provide an opportunity to kick off a new beginning for the football industry. From the perspective of a top club like Brighton, what do you think can be done in this new era to make football even greater?
A. Well, we’ve all shown we can adapt to very challenging circumstances. We can innovate. We can survive. Hopefully, moving forward we can prosper too.

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LaLiga and Johan Cruyff Institute join WFS Live as official partners
LaLiga and Johan Cruyff Institute join WFS Live as official partners 1617 1365 WFS Live

LaLiga and Johan Cruyff Institute will be partners of WFS Live powered by Octagon, the online summit that will bring football’s biggest names together from July 6-9 to address the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the global football industry and the challenges and opportunities that will arise in this new and unprecedented scenario.

Both brands have a long-lasting and fruitful relationship with WFS. They’ve been a part of every summit since 2016, and have helped produce some of the most memorable moments, fostering insightful discussions and bringing top leaders to the stage.

LaLiga, Spain’s top tier, is one of the world’s most popular sports competitions, with a global audience of over 2,7 billion and more than 100 million followers across social media platforms. It’s powered by the likes of Real Madrid or FC Barcelona, two of the biggest clubs in the world, but as its slogan says –it’s not football, it’s LaLiga– it has become much more than a sport competition. It is a global reference in innovation. Initiatives like #LaLigaSantanderChallenge (a virtual FIFA20 competition involving real football players) or #LaLigamusicfest (an online music festival that brought together athletes and musicians) are just two of the latest examples of its cutting edge approach to fan engagement and digital content.

Johan Cruyff pictured with a group of graduates from the Johan Cruyff Institute.

Johan Cruyff Institute, who joins as Academic Partner, is an academic institution specialising in educating athletes, sport and business professionals to become leaders in sport management. More than 9,000 students from all over the world have experienced their online, onsite and on campus learning programs in Sport Management, Sport Marketing, Sponsorship, Coaching and Football Business. Edwin van der Sar (current CEO of Ajax), Michael Reiziger or Gianluca Vialli are among their alumni. Founded by Johan Cruyff, one of the game’s biggest legends, it currently runs institutes in Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Mexico and Peru.

“We are delighted to have two leaders such as LaLiga and Johan Cruyff Institute on board for this new and exciting event. Both have played an important role in the growth of World Football Summit and I’m sure they will continue to do so in this crucial moment, in which we are all facing new challenges”, said Jan Alessie, director of World Football Summit.

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Iván Codina (LaLiga), on how the COVID-19 crisis can help football reach the next level
Iván Codina (LaLiga), on how the COVID-19 crisis can help football reach the next level 1665 1189 WFS Live

Over the last few weeks, LaLiga has made a huge effort to keep its fans engaged and to promote its partners worldwide, with a FIFA20 competition involving real LaLiga players representing their clubs (#LaLigaSantanderChallenge), an online festival that brought football and music stars together to raise more than €600,000 to fight coronavirus (#LaLigaMusicFest) and three new TV programmes that allowed the league’s global audience to peak into how players were dealing with the lockdown.

While clubs in Spain resume training ahead of a potential restart of the competition, we talk to its Managing Director in South East Asia, Iván Codina, about the lessons learned while filling the void left by the COVID-19 lockdown and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for both the sport and the industry.

Q. Firstly Iván, how are you doing right now and how is the coronavirus affecting you personally and professionally?

A. Well, I’m taking this call from home, like pretty much everyone else nowadays. In Singapore, things have evolved in a difficult way in the past few days. Everybody is already in lockdown at home and the number of cases has been increasing drastically in the past few days. The local government is taking the right measures to try to have COVID-19 under control, so that means that for the time being I’m working from home like everyone else and like all my colleagues. I’m trying to overcome the challenges of working at home with kids running around, but so far so good. In terms of how this is affecting our business, as you can imagine it’s had a massive impact. Right now, we are just trying to have open discussions with all our stakeholders and we are assessing the situation to see how we can best accommodate or overcome this situation altogether.

Q. One of the issues the coronavirus might be revealing is that football perhaps relies too much on live events. Would you agree that this is one of the major challenges the industry is facing in the next few months? And, how is LaLiga tackling this in the Asian market?

A. We consider ourselves as an entertainment company, as in sports and entertainment. So, we live in this space and, for us, it’s no longer just about the 90 minutes on the field of play. The consumption behaviour has been changing drastically in the last few years. The millennials and the youngsters that follow LaLiga are sometimes more interested in other sorts of content other than highlights or what’s going on in the 90 minutes on the field of play. That gives us an opportunity to find different ways to engage with these fans. We focus a lot on what happens before and after and during the week. That’s very important because we have identified a huge increase in demand or appetite for this kind of content. We always try to develop new ways to engage with our existing fans and also to attract other fans that may not necessarily be traditional football fans. We’re always trying to be creative and to identify other content and that’s why our slogan is ‘it’s not football, it’s LaLiga’. We have multiple events and projects that we work on at LaLiga. We’ve also been currently working to also see how we can best support the fight against the current situation. It’s a global crisis. Of course, LaLiga has been coming up with events like #LaLigaSantanderFest or #LaLigaSantanderChallenge. We have been raising funds to support the fight against coronavirus and to be able to buy some medical equipment for the hospitals to be able to fight the coronavirus.

Q. I know that hosting on-site activations together with local partners and broadcasters is a crucial part of LaLiga’s famous ‘glocal’ strategy. So, how do you keep the ball rolling for the clubs now that there’s no action going on?

A. Everybody is being hit one way or another from the coronavirus. It is very important for us to have even better communication with all the different stakeholders than we had up until now. It’s very important to work with the likes of the broadcasters, existing commercial partners and the different leagues that we partner. We’re listening to the fans and seeing how we can all support each other. For us, it’s very important to identify ways in which we keep offering value to the associations we have with our stakeholders. Luckily for us, a partnership with LaLiga is not necessarily just about what happened in the 90 minutes of a live match in Spain. It’s much more than that. So, we’re trying to see how exactly we can develop specific content, depending on the market, that we feel is going to be more engaging for both our fans and for our commercial partners or broadcasters. So, we have been working very closely with our partners in defining what is the best way to engage with our fans. Having said that, we also need to try to be sensitive to what’s going on right now. It’s not necessarily the right time to be seen as being very pushy as you try to promote your brand. Right now, of course it’s okay to continue engaging with your fans and trying to be creative and see what is the best way to come up with relevant content for the market. But also, it needs to be a little bit sensitive.

Q. Are you working on strategies for how to relaunch the league when that eventually happens? I suppose that the Asian market will continue to be crucial since it could be one of the first markets in the world to recover from the crisis.

A. The internationalisation of the league is one of the biggest strategies and objectives right now. We still have a long way to go to grow our brand and our presence in a lot of markets. In this region in particular, we have a lot of room for improvement. I wouldn’t necessarily call it a relaunch. But, that being said, what we’re starting to work on is to try to see what is the best way to make sure that everybody is aware that the competition is resumed when it comes to the right time. As you know, we have a project called LaLiga Global Network where we have over 50 delegates sent across the world, with nine of these delegates in nine different markets in this part of the world. We’re trying to see with them what would be best once the competition is resumed. We’ve been trying to develop ideas and activation plans for the remaining 11 matches. But, again, there’s a lot of uncertainty and also we need to take care and make sure we understand what the situation is in each of the different markets. We can try to send across a message of hope and try to keep people positive. I guess that once we see that football is coming back then probably that will be seen as a message of hope for everyone.

Q. We’ve already seen the economic impact the coronavirus crisis has had on clubs in Europe. What do you think the impact will be on Asian football?

A. Everybody is getting hit, right? And the football industry in particular has massively been hit. We need to understand the ecosystem of the different leagues in the region. We have the more developed leagues such as the Chinese Super League or the J League or K League or even the A League in Australia. Then we have the less developed leagues in South East Asia and other parts of the region. In the more developed leagues, perhaps compared to the top European leagues the impact is a little less because in the top European leagues they are heavily dependent on massive TV broadcasting deals. In these leagues they also depend a lot on broadcasting rights, but it’s not the same proportionally if compared to the top European leagues. A lot of the top clubs depend more on private investment of some of the big local companies and that gives you an idea that the impact might be lessened compared to the top European leagues. Whereas for the less developed leagues in this region, they normally don’t have much revenue coming from sponsorship or TV rights, so it’s still going to be challenging for them. Right now, we’re even looking at leagues that might not even be able to go back next season and they might need to stop for a while. So, it’s a complete disaster. Most of the clubs cannot pay their players, so the situation is a little bit worrying. There are going to be challenging times ahead for them.

Q. What do you think will be the main consequences and challenges in the future for football properties such as LaLiga, as we move forward from this and into the future?

A. It’s very hard to guess what it’s going to be like in the next few months once things start settling down. So much has been said about life as we know it never being the same. I’m sure there are going to be some opportunities and some things that are going to change. It’s difficult to say which. I just can say that those who can be more flexible to adjust to the new circumstances are going to be the ones who are going to make it back and can even look to a brighter future. That’s what we are working on right now. We know it’s going to be a very challenging path, first to try to resume the competition and also there are going to be some circumstances we won’t be familiar with. I particularly think there’s going to be an opportunity to be more creative on digital and with the way that we try to bring the game closer to the fans. Let’s not forget that ultimately there are only a few lucky fans who are able to attend the matches in the stadiums, but there are millions of fans out there that have never had a chance to go and experience the competition live. So, the way we engage with fans all over the world I think will improve due to the current situation. I think it’s going to be a big opportunity to improve on digital and content and be more creative when it comes to engaging with the fans. It’s probably going to be more challenging when it comes to securing partnerships. The rights holder will need to be more creative in coming up with additional value to convince some of the brands out there to look for an association with a league. I think that’s going to be a challenge probably. But, I want to remain positive. Perhaps this is going to be an opportunity to bring the football industry to the next level.  I’m sure that we will overcome this situation and hopefully we will come out stronger and with an even higher proposition for our partners.

  • WFS Live
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WFS, Ronaldo and Octagon Brasil join forces to kick off football’s new beginning
WFS, Ronaldo and Octagon Brasil join forces to kick off football’s new beginning 2048 1365 WFS Live

The sport industry is facing its biggest challenge in history due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. All major competitions have been forced to pause for over two months and it is highly likely some of them will not resume at all, enforcing multi-million losses across the industry. Among others, the UEFA Champions League, the NBA and the NHL have had to postpone their respective plans to restart several times over the last few weeks and it remains uncertain when and under what conditions they will be able to resume. Until a vaccine is available, travel and restrictions on large public gatherings will remain in place all over the world.

This “new normal” will inevitably lead to a significant decrease in some traditional revenue streams, forcing all stakeholders to rethink business models and pursue new opportunities. This will require the industry’s major players to come together and join forces like never before in order to overcome these obstacles and explore new opportunities.

That communal response will begin at WFS Live powered by Octagon – the first virtual event that will bring together the entirety of the global football industry’s leaders in one place. Top executives from clubs, leagues, federations, broadcasters, agencies and sponsorship brands from every continent will band side by side to lay sound foundations for the sport to continue growing into a new era.

“The importance of World Football Summit for the global football industry is irrefutable. I have been to the summit with Real Valladolid and now I am honoured to promote the event with Octagon Brasil.” – Ronaldo Nazário

From the 6-9 July, more than 50 leaders will address crucial issues such as; how to adapt mass events and venues to the new sanitary context, the need to enhance digital tools to further monetise fan engagement, the best strategies to capitalise on the growing eSports industry, and how to develop new non-linear content formats to engage fans and add value to sponsors while competitions are paused.

WFS Live powered by Octagon will include all features that make the WFS Series the largest and most appreciated networking events in the global football landscape, attracting key decision-makers over the years such as Fatma Samoura, Secretary General of FIFA; Andrea Agnelli, Chairman of Juventus and the European Club Association (ECA); Peter Moore, CEO of Liverpool FC; and Javier Tebas, President of LaLiga; as well as leading partners like Amazon, Banco Santander, Budweiser, and Facebook. This time, however, to the top speakers and the premium networking it will add an entire new range of opportunities powered by the latest AI-driven tools, as well as unprecedented participation from a truly global audience.

WFS Live powered by Octagon is the result of a unique partnership between three global benchmarks in the sport industry: World Football Summit, football’s leading networking platform and event organiser; Octagon Brasil, global leader in sports and entertainment management and marketing; and Ronaldo Nazário, one of the best players the game has ever seen, President of Octagon Brasil and owner of LaLiga’s Real Valladolid. Ronaldo is at the forefront of the new wave of young executives storming the industry thanks to both a deep knowledge of the game and their solid training in the field of management and administration.

NET PROCEEDS WILL BE DONATED TO DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

“The importance of World Football Summit for the global football industry is irrefutable. It provides a multi-stakeholder dialogue; encourages networking; fosters discussions about technologies, innovations and the future of that market; and generates business opportunities. I have been to the summit with Real Valladolid and now I am honoured to promote the event with Octagon Brasil. We are in a pandemic scenario and there are many social, economic, cultural and political impacts. Unsurprisingly, football has not escaped the effects of the outbreak and, therefore, the event is even more necessary. WFS Live powered by Octagon have already confirmed the participation of big names in the industry and will have an unprecedented reach-from home, everyone will be able to follow, contribute and enjoy a whole world of possibilities.” – Ronaldo Nazário.

“Combining Octagon’s enormous prestige and unmatchable network, the unrivalled leadership of Ronaldo and our experience hosting and managing events, we are sure that WFS Live powered by Octagon will kick off a new era for football.” – Jan Alessie

WFS Live powered by Octagon aims to contribute to the growth of the industry, but also to help those communities that have been most severely hit by coronavirus. That’s why all net proceeds will be donated to Fundação Fenômenos, created by Ronaldo in 2012, which supports social projects aiming to improve living conditions of communities across Brasil, and the Common Goal COVID-19 Response Fund, which will support community organisations across the world to deliver essential services during the COVID-19 crisis and to continue supporting vulnerable young people in the aftermath of the crisis.

“At WFS our goal has always been to provide the industry with the best possible platform to come together and explore new growth opportunities. We believe that in the current context this role is more important than ever. Unprecedented challenges call for unprecedented action. That’s what this unique partnership, as well as our commitment as members of Common Goal, is all about. Combining Octagon’s enormous prestige and unmatchable network, the unrivalled leadership of Ronaldo and our experience hosting and managing events, we are sure that WFS Live powered by Octagon will kick off a new era for football.” – Jan Alessie, Director of WFS.

“It is very important for us at Octagon Brasil to be involved in an event of this magnitude, especially at a time like the current one. It is a unique opportunity to connect the market, share content and, of course, contribute to the debate about what the world of football will look like in the coming years. Besides, of course, the unique opportunity to form a partnership with World Football Summit, a reference in football congresses in the world, and to be side by side with Ronaldo, with whom we share so many projects at Octagon.” – Eduardo Baraldi, CEO of Octagon Brasil.

Tickets for WFS Live powered by Octagon will be released in the coming days. In the meantime, you can register your interest here.

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