How Future Business Leaders Can Enter the World of Football Business
Football isn’t just played on the pitch. Discover the booming business behind the world's most popular sport and how you can become part of it.
- ⏳ 3-5 min read
- Master Studies
- What is football business?
- How can you get into football business?
✨ 5-second summary
- Football business is the commercial side of the sport, covering everything from sponsorship and events to club management.
- The Football Business Academy offers specialized education to help you turn your passion into a career in the football industry.
With over four billion fans and 240 million players worldwide, football keeps hold of its stable spot as the most popular sport in the world.
Football would not be what it's today without the work of countless people behind the scenes who push the sport forward, off the pitch. This sector is called football business.
The business is relatively new, and this is often shown in the lack of professionalism and training of its leaders. Let's take a closer look at the world of football business and how to start your career in this thrilling field.
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What is football business?
Football has been around for generations, and while the people's love for it hasn't changed, the business side of it has seen unparalleled growth. Manchester United alone made 571 million euros in 2021, making it the club with the highest revenue in the world.
Between deals with players, sponsors, and broadcasting companies, football generates billions of dollars in revenue every year, with new trends constantly changing the scenario.
For Kresimir Bebic, a former player who now dedicates his time to the business side, maintaining the fans' enthusiasm will be a central concern in the following years.
"With newer generations, it's difficult to have them engaged with sport in person as everything has become more digital. Fan experience is going to be a major topic to make sure attendance continues at stadiums," he explains.
💡⚽ Women's football is seeing huge growth
Another massive growth opportunity, according to insiders, is women's football.
In fact, with the social stigma attached to women playing football falling fast, there comes thrilling potential for the women's game. Women's football is being taken seriously, both on and off the field, creating prominent business opportunities.
Kelly Simmons, the Football Association's new Director of Women's Football, told The Telegraph, "I genuinely believe that women's football can be the first female team sport to break into the mainstream. [...]
With our clubs and the investment taking place, we can be that breakthrough sport where the players are household names playing in front of larger crowds at sustainable clubs."
This will increase revenue in women's football, grow the business, and help strengthen the industry.
How can you get into football business?
There is no set path for starting a career in football business. You can join a club in an entry-level position and work your way up as you go, but there are ways to speed up the process.
Getting a business degree can help you advance faster, but the ideal, most assured way to break into football business is to get a specific football business degree.
There are a lot of areas within football to choose from. These include:
- Club management
- Sponsorships
- Stadium attendance
- Events
- Merchandising
- Media
- Communications
These are just some of the fields you can focus on, all of them offering unique opportunities to combine the sport with your other passions.
The Football Business Academy
The Football Business Academy (FBA) is an ambitious educational institution whose Master's program aims to create the next generation of leaders in the fascinating and dynamic football industry.
The numbers speak for themselves:
- Participants hail from 23 nations
- Over 2,500 industry contacts
- 20 internship and student business project partnerships
- 90 % employability rate within three months after graduation.
The FBA offers a 12-month program designed for people who want to break into the football industry. It provides all the tools and knowledge necessary to succeed in the industry.
The program is divided into four modules and covers various topics relevant to the sport, such as:
- Global history
- Financial strategy
- Stadium operations
- Women's football development
- Fan engagement
- Ethics
Industry experts make up the team of faculty who share their experiences with students.
Some of the clubs and organizations the FBA has links with include:
- Real Madrid
- Girona FC
- Olympique Lyonnais
- Benfica
- Football charity Common Goal (which includes Juan Mata, Mats Hummels, Giorgio Chiellini, and Shinji Kagawa as members)
- The European Football for Development Network
- Streetfootballworld
🎓 Alumni testimonials
With her background in global business and sustainability, Gina Stein got the chance to do just that through her degree from The Football Business Academy.
After researching online and chatting with alums, Gina found what she was looking for in The FBA. Her internship was arranged at the world-famous German club Bayern Munich, which she loved.
She says, "The topics are very up-to-date and include rising topics such as women's football, digital marketing, and sustainability. In addition to the online classes, which give you the option to be flexible and work next to it, the FBA guarantees you an internship within the industry to get the ball rolling and set foot into the business."
That helping hand was precisely what brought Kresimir to the program, as well.
He did his internship at The FBA’s partner, Match IQ, a leading sports event agency specializing in sporting preparation that works with leading European football clubs and some of the world's biggest sports federations.
Kresimir explains:
"The feature that caught my eye the most, and one that makes it stand out above competitors, is the guaranteed internship. This enables students to get a sneak peek of what life is like working in the football industry and offers them the chance of potentially being hired by the company they intern for once the program is finished."
Now, Kresimir relies on his peers and the school to make his mark on the industry:
"The FBA is all about 'building the future of football together,' and they stay true to their word. Whereas universities may very well cease contact once you've graduated, the FBA Remains the support mechanism their current and past students can rely on when looking to connect with new people."
Like Kresimir, Gina has found a family in her colleagues:
"The resilience and the backup I saw in the group and the FBA were unique. I'm proud and happy to be part of such a family and truly believe I found family and friends for life that always have each other's backs."
With the industry knowledge and supportive network she's acquired through the program, she is looking forward to helping the sport's impact grow:
"I am most excited about the impact (environmental but also social) that football can have in the future. This field is growing in any industry, but football has a special task in it as its nature is unique and opens so many opportunities to be explored and developed."
Conclusion
Football is more than just a game; it's a booming global industry with a growing demand for trained professionals. As the sport evolves, so do the opportunities. With specialized programs like the one offered by The Football Business Academy, you can gain the skills, experience, and network you need to thrive in the exciting world of football business.
Article written in association with The Football Business Academy.
- What is football business?
- How can you get into football business?
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