Football Partnerships

By Alex Kotler

Travel essentials
Toothbrush. Check.
Tickets. Check.
Passport. Check.
Luggage tags. Check.
Reading material. Check.
Electrical adaptors for every outlet worldwide. Check.
Lightweight, tailored suit with three matching shirt/tie combos. Check.
Business cards enough to drown a hippopotamus. Check.
Digital camera to capture image of me and George Weah. Check.
Everything we need to take Soccerex 2008 by storm. Check. Again.

Inevitably, I’ll arrive to find that I forgot something. Like pens. I’ll buy some. Rules. I’ll bend some. Deodorant. I’ll borrow some. (Kidding about the deodorant. And the rules. Maybe.)

Most things, though, are replaceable or avoidable or incidental. So, provided I land safely with a pressed suit and business cards, I’ll be prepared for Soccerex.

The Conference Professional
I’m no stranger to conferences. In 2001 I attended TRENZ in Christchurch, the national convention for tourism professionals in New Zealand, on behalf of Absolute Travel, a deluxe tour operator in New York City. In 2005, while working with Sony-BMG, I went to HOW in Chicago, the industry get-together for creative professionals. Each congress featured the field’s pioneers and innovators, under- and over-rated panels and panelists, vendors promoting goods and services that ranged from highly intriguing to highly undesirable, more opportunities to drink coffee than at Starbucks in Seattle, and delegates from near and far linked by their similar penchant for wearing nametags. Awesome. Both of them. Really.

And I expect Soccerex to be no different.

Managing Expectations
As a small business owner, balancing limited resources and striving for growth, one of my priorities is managing expectations. This applies to the promises I make to others as well as those to myself. Whether it’s to do with content or punctuality, quantity or functionality, meeting or exceeding what’s been promised is the foundation of Football Partnerships’ reputation.

The same applies to others and the impressions they make on me – which is why I am going to Soccerex in the first place.

The Soccerexers
The staffers of Soccerex were some of the first members of the Football Partnerships (FP) LinkedIn group. Through their involvement in FP, we came to forge a professional relationship – which has blossomed into a strategic partnership and friendship. Although we share an audience – football’s business community – we view our overlapping market space as non-competitive and have pledged to work jointly to broaden awareness about Soccerex 2008. In exchange for providing a platform, FP is invited to the event in South Africa.

Credit to Soccerex, too, for offering the personalized attention so easily overlooked. This applies in particular to Misha (Sher), who has always made himself available to answer my questions at, what would seem, irregular hours to say the least. Returning to my point about managing expectations, the team at Soccerex has done exactly that.

However, it’s not just the people who merit recognition.

Soccerex is techno-savvy
The genius of online social networking is that once the infrastructure is developed the people are released to build it out. In partnership with Kupferwerk, which bills itself as an expert in human interface engineering, Soccerex has released an online tool for all conference delegates, called Soccer Exchange, through which we can establish contact, set meetings, view schedules, and fret over our personal profiles. (Should I mention my favorite team? Should I reveal what I’m interested in?)

My favorite part about Soccer Exchange is scrolling through and surveying the attendees. I can see whom from where is coming, and strategize how to approach him/her. Like on Facebook, we can send each other messages and request to become Contacts (ie, ‘Friends’). Via a personalized scheduler, we can even set meetings with each other. (Would it be too bold to request a meeting with George Weah?)

At its announced release, circa three weeks ago, I dove in and sent a bespoke introductory letter to over 100 Soccer Exchange Members – tweaking each time for name and brand. Not generally an early adopter, I became one to establish the Football Partnerships name on Soccer Exchange before everyone else. Now that my Inbox is clogged with everyone else’s clutter, I have taken a more reserved and calculated approach. SPAM (ie, the mass solicitation) is the unfortunate byproduct of applications like Soccer Exchange, especially in a commercial arena. (“Sure, Bill, I’ll try to stop by your booth to check out your company’s world class, life-saving, one-of-a-kind football gadget that turns ordinary players into superheroes and average coaches into master tacticians.”)

Lining up the shot
Having the proper approach to an event like Soccerex is essential. Mine lies somewhere between Lane Meyer from Better off Dead and Louden Swain from Vision Quest: each an underdog character, passionate about his trade, devoted to his training, and typecast to overcome adversity and win the girl – despite dramatic setbacks during pivotal scenes.

These vain impressions are, admittedly, romanticized, but what shouldn’t get lost is the ethic of preparedness. Thus, I have set goals of myself, requiring that I be able to communicate the following:

1. My elevator pitch. FP is a business-to-business network and resource for soccer industry professionals and marketers seeking exposure within the football environment. FP partners with Soccerex to increase awareness about football opportunities worldwide, to connect individuals and companies from the highest echelons down to the grassroots level, and to consult on football-related projects.

2. The FP revenue model. Football Partnerships earns money via (a) online and podcast advertising revenue, (b) consulting, and (c) various projects currently under development. As the company matures and the network expands, we anticipate the model to shift its weight to predominate from (c) to (b) to (a).

3. What is FPs’ objective at Soccerex 2008? As the founder of FP, I am attending to increase the awareness of the FP brand, to meet current members of FP personally, and to recruit new members and potential partners to FP.

4. What to say if I meet George Weah. Uh. Dude. You’re awesome.

Staying nimble
Did you see Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s heel flick goal? Impressive. It’s often mentioned that he has a black belt in Tae Kwan Do, revealed as if it were a caveat. Regardless, for a big man, he’s clearly flexible, an attribute that - aside from his gum-juggling skills - is one reason I admire him as a footballer. I’d love to say that I model my style of play after his: brutish, physical, deadly from anywhere within 25 yards, but softened by a shockingly pillowy touch - outside of the Champions League and internationally, of course.

But I can’t.

However, I can be flexible, and in this vein I have left the entirety of my schedule open whilst at Soccerex. (Here’s where I tie everything together.)

My experience from other conferences tells me that - particularly in unfamiliar environs - it’s best to keep things open. I have my preconceptions about South Africa and Soccerex, but they will undoubtedly be different than their brochures suggest.

Armed with a local mobile phone, a wrinkle-free suit, a list of Soccer Exchange contacts, a solid elevator pitch, and an open schedule, I’m out to make a strong impression. I expect that much of myself.

So, off I scuttle to the airport, hoping I’ve brought everything from writing utensils to hygienic products, and ready to take on the footballing world in Johannesburg, also known as the City of Gold.

With 17 hours at 35,000 feet, I’ll have plenty of time to work on my approach to George Weah.

UEFA agrees Champions League rights deals in China
Chinese free-to-air channel, CCTV 5, agreed a three year deal with UEFA for Champions League television rights, from 2009 to 2012.

Under the deal, CCTV 5 will broadcast one live match and a highlights show on each night of Champions League action and another match on tape delay every week. In addition the broadcaster will show its selected live match over the Internet and through mobile phones.

UEFA general secretary, David Taylor, said: “We are delighted to enhance our partnership with CCTV in China with a new deal that guarantees increased coverage and massive exposure for the Champions League in the world’s most populous nation”.

CCTV is available in 350 million homes across China, while the broadcaster will also show its selected. Terms of the deal were not revealed.

UEFA also sold the English language pay-TV rights in China to ESPN Star Sports, a partnership between parent companies Walt Disney and News Corporation, for the same three-year period. The station will screen one live game each match night from the Champions League and the Europa League, the current UEFA Cup, which is being rebranded from 2009.

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Leaders in Football, the international business summit for senior decision makers in the football world, extended its partnership with Chelsea football club for 2009.

Under the proposals, Leaders in Football will again create an exclusive environment by focusing on commercial, media and technology services and limiting the number to 1,000 senior level delegates. So far 90 per cent of exhibitors attending the 2008 conference have rebooked for 2009.

A survey of delegates also confirmed an overwhelmingly positive response with the majority commenting on the right number and quality of delegates being organised in an intimate environment perfect for networking. With demand for passes exceeding supply in 2009, Leaders in Football is presently profiling future delegates to ensure the exclusivity of the event is maintained.

The 2008 event was covered worldwide by BBC, ESPN Star Sports, Sky News, Reuters, Setanta, CNN, Bloomberg, SNTV, The Economist, The FT, Yahoo! MSN, and Google, amongst others.

Article source

Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols is adding his star power to a group working to bring an MLS expansion team to the area.

The announcement on Tuesday comes a day after Pujols won his second NL MVP award. Pujols’ reputation, plus a significant financial investment that was not disclosed, is expected to boost St. Louis Soccer United’s chances of winning a franchise in 2011.

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By Jack Bell

Don Garber became the second commissioner of Major League Soccer on Aug. 4, 1999. Since then, he has presided over a period of growth that has seen the league increase its number of teams and number of owners while putting in a foundation intended to last. There have been ups and downs along the way, but Garber is unabashedly bullish about the M.L.S. of today and of the future. He spoke with The New York Times during the week leading up to the league championship game, M.L.S. Cup ’08, between the Red Bulls and Columbus Crew at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., on Nov. 23.

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