Pfannenberg’s Post

The 2024 edtion of the annual EU Sport Forum will take place on 16 and 17 April 2024 in Liège, Belgium orginised by the European Commission. On the second day, a high-level panel will be held: Dialogue on new perspectives for the European football ecosystem. We have got the the governing body UEFA, the clubs with two organisations European Club Association (ECA) and Union of European Clubs, the leagues with European Leagues, the players with FIFPRO and the fans with Football Supporters Europe.  There is no representative of European football agents' associations among the speakers. As a reminder, in 2023 by far the largest proportion of all club agents were used by clubs in UEFA, which also accounted for the lion's share of global spending on football agents with USD 765.7 million. The event will be streamed online here https://lnkd.in/daubFAFn Looking forward to interesting discussions... #FFAR #sportsbusiness #footballregulation #sportslaw #footballLaw #football #FootballBusiness #footballnews #footballagent #footballbusiness #fifa #uefa #eu #belgium #Liège #eusportforum #eusport #EuropeanCommission

The UEFA EURO 2024 is heating up with some scintillating goals and a fervent atmosphere! While the FIFA Football World Cup remains the most watched sports event by far, the Euros also generate quite some excitement among football fans. Here are some interesting snippets (courtesy Business of Sport podcast) from the tournament that's taking place in Germany this time: -The 2024 edition is the 17th edition of the tournament, with matches being held in 10 stadiums across the country -The total prize money up for grabs is €331 million with the winners of the tournament receiving a total of €28.5m across all their games. Here's how it's broken up- Qualifying for the tournament gives a team €9.25m, winning each group game €1m, while reaching the knockout stages has a prize money of €1.5m. The prize money goes up significantly as the tournament progresses with the quarter-finalists receiving €2.5m & semis-finalists €4m with the runners-up and winners of the tournament receiving €5m and €8m respectively. -England have the most expensive squad valued at €1.52 billion, followed by France at €1.23b and Portugal at €1.05b. Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe lead the player valuations, with an estimated €180m each. -The tournament is expected to generate €2.4b in revenue for UEFA across media rights, commercial sponsorship, ticketing, hospitality with media rights contributing to almost half the total! -Interestingly, the tournament should have a positive impact on Germany's economy which shrank 0.3% in 2023. Beer sales that are on a downward trend are expected to rebound, along with an increase in hospitality revenues and overall infrastructure upgrades that have been happening in preparation for the tournament. -However, despite not hosting the tournament, the true economical benefactors might just be England! It's expected that a successful campaign (reaching the semis or the finals) could lead to spends of close to €2.75b in the country, with 80 million pints or €400m worth of beer being sold and 12 million people buying the most popular sports food- pizza! Ask any football fan and they'll tell you that football is an emotion. It's also quite a business! Sharing a small clip of the Dutch football fans lining up the streets of Hamburg waiting for their team's first game! https://lnkd.in/gyqhgKXA

What is the difference between UEFA EURO 2024 and partnerships?   Football is about winning. Partnerships are about win-win. Partnerships are not about optimizing own profit. If you lose, I lose. But we can win together!   Last week, I was attending Børsen Bæredygtig Summit, where Helle Svendsen and Camilla Skjønning Jørgensen gave a great and tangible example of such a win-win partnership, see video in Danish below.   With that, I will wish you a great summer and a great match tomorrow between Denmark and Germany. Imagine if both teams could win.   #partnerships

#Multiclub #ownership should be banned. Period. When groups own clubs on different continents, they can engage in transfers that allow them to play around rules and that gives them an unfair advantage over other clubs m. When groups own clubs that compete in the same competition like in European #competitions, the conflict of interests is worse even with a 30% or a 10% stake and even with a trust. In the case of #Girona, there is common ownership, #Manchestercity 's manager Pep #Guardiola's brother is Girona's chairman, and several players were moved from City to Girona and played an important role in Girona's great performance this year. What would happen if Girona were to face City in next year's Champions League? #governance #sport #business #uefa #football #competition #fairness #competitionpolicy https://lnkd.in/eUY_H5dE

The Norwegian Eliteserien is on the way up! With teams being more competitive in European competitions, and more players being sold internationally. Here's a breakdown of all the transfers to international clubs from 2019 to 2024 (Transfer fee above €500k). Key takeaways: - An increase in players being sold per season, with higher average and max transfer fees. - Eredivisie and Belgian Pro League being the most popular destinations, and the two leagues show good potential for players to grow. Interestingly, 4 players who are now playing at top European clubs, all went this route. - The Czech and Hungarian league have become interesting options for players looking to gain playing time. Will be interesting to see how the league progresses, with more focus on growing and distributing talent internationally. #football #eliteserien #norwegianfootball

🇱🇻 🇱🇹 🇪🇪 Baltic League could and should become the first cross-border football league in Europe. Years ago Baltic League already existed and no matter what many “experts” say, it was a positive experience for clubs, federations and also fans. First season final was sold out when Skonto played in Riga against Kaunas. Unfortunately support from governing bodies was not there and the project collapsed at the end due to different reasons. It is obvious that countries like Latvia with a market of 1.8m are not capable to compete with even middle scale leagues attracting international viewers, partners and fans. Our clubs are lacking international experience as well: only two times LV clubs qualified for UCC group stage since 1991. Competition structure, that is offered to Baltic clubs, is not killing the local rivalry as well, as the first two rounds will be played within existing local Leagues. For now Latvia is a project locomotive. Hope clubs in LTU and EST will hop on board and will challenge NAs to start the discussion.

The UEFA Euro 2024 is a major international football tournament scheduled to be held in Germany. It will be the 17th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a prestigious competition that takes place every four years. Germany last hosted the tournament in 1988 when it was still West Germany. Here are some key details about Euro 2024: 1. Host Country: Germany won the bid to host Euro 2024, beating out Turkey in the bidding process. 2. Venues: The tournament will be hosted across multiple cities in Germany, with specific venues to be finalized closer to the event. Typically, Euro tournaments use a mix of modern and historic stadiums across the host nation. 3. Format: The format is expected to feature 24 national teams, similar to recent editions of the tournament. Teams will compete in group stages followed by knockout rounds until a champion is crowned. 4. Dates: Euro 2024 is scheduled to take place in June and July, spanning several weeks of intense football action. 5. Legacy and Impact: Hosting Euro 2024 is seen as a significant sporting and cultural event for Germany, providing opportunities for tourism, economic growth, and a showcase of German hospitality and infrastructure. As the tournament approaches, more details regarding participating teams, match schedules, and logistical arrangements will be announced by UEFA, the governing body of European football. #snsinstitutions #snsct #snsdesignthinkers #snsdesignthinking

The UEFA's House is on Fire ♨♨♨ 🚒 🚒🚒 (Part 1) While on the surface everything seems to be going perfectly in the best of all worlds for UEFA and FIFA, a thorough analysis of the situation shows that the reality is quite different. Let's scratch together this magnificent superficial layer of shine. The new formula for the #ChampionsLeague ( 2 other competitions organized by #UEFA) is once again the result of negotiations with big clubs. The qualification mechanism turns out to be largely advantageous (61% (22/36) of available spots) for Big5 clubs (= 5 major championships in Europe), and more specifically for "Big" clubs (2 clubs saved). I couldn't find reliable information about the mechanisms for distributing media rights among participating clubs. Nevertheless, if we continue the logic that began in 1999, this distribution should once again favor the big clubs. #UEFA is skillfully trying to promote its 2 other competitions (#EuropaLeague #ConferenceLeague). Indeed, these represent an undeniable lever for economic growth. Unfortunately, the hierarchy seems well established in the minds of consumers, and the most likely hypothesis is that of a #ChampionsLeague that will continue to dominate consumer interest, relegating the Europa League and Conference League to 2nd and 3rd tier #competitions respectively; with the #financial consequences that entails. That's assuming this new formula appeals to consumers! Thus, UEFA's desire to maintain a vertical system to maintain its #monopoly will have the consequence of further accentuating the gap between big and small clubs. And while nothing suggests that this solution (proposed by UEFA) will please the big clubs (who will always have the possibility of breaking away), it seems certain that this situation will not please the "small" clubs (leagues outside the Big5) at all. One of these clubs has already publicly expressed its dissatisfaction: the Luxembourg club FC Swift Hesperange. It filed a complaint in 2022 against #UEFA and #FIFA; one of the reasons being the questioning of the territoriality rules of these #federations. This complaint, in light of European jurisprudence, has a real chance of succeeding. If this were the case, it would offer the possibility for national #leagues to associate and create #transnational leagues outside of UEFA's control. Another ongoing case potentially has the power to set the current system on fire: FIFPro Division Europe is filing a complaint against #FIFA and its unilateral power to establish the international match calendar... ... To be continued in an upcoming post, and the full story in my next book: "Towards a new organization of football and sport in Europe" 😁 Dupont-Hissel, Jean-Louis Dupont

🥅 As some gear up for the Christmas football fixtures, the #CJEU has thrown an unexpected twist into the seasonal excitement.   ⚽ Regarding UEFA and Royal Belgian Football Association's stipulation of a minimum number of 'home-grown players' in teams, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that this could potentially breach both #competitionrules and the #freemovement of workers (C-680/21 | Royal Antwerp Football Club).   While the recognition of the application #EUlaw to #UEFA and #URBSFA rules marks a partial victory for Royal Antwerp F.C., the final result is pending before the Belgian domestic court.   ⚽ Even more impactful judgment is the finding that FIFA and #UEFA rules concerning the prior approval of new interclub football competitions, like the EUROPEAN SUPER LEAGUE’s #SuperLeague, and the prohibition of players and clubs from participating in such events, contravene EU #competitionlaw and #freemovement of services (C-333/21 | European Superleague Company).   This does not mean yet a green light for the Super League, but a check on the #dominantposition precluding competition, among others, for the media market.   Critically, the Court concluded that the UEFA/FIFA rules imposing prior approval for setting up a new interclub football competition by a third-party, and controlling the participation of professional football clubs and players in such a competition, must provide substantive criteria and detailed procedural rules suitable for ensuring that the rules are transparent, objective, non-discriminatory and proportionate,    The verdict cleared the way for the creation of competition against the UEFA Champions League. Just one day after the judgment, A22 Sports Management proposed the creation of an open European competition with 64 men's and 32 women's clubs divided into 3 and 2 leagues respectively. No club would be guaranteed a permanent place, and promotions and relegations between leagues would occur each year based on sports performance. 🎅 Ultimately, as the Christmas bells ring, the distinction between those who've been naughty and nice in fostering genuine sportsmanship becomes crystal clear. by Marcin J. Menkes

So, another season of the utterly pointless rugby URC, set up by Irish clubs and broadcasters for the benefit of Irish clubs and broadcasters. I'm currently watching an Italian side against a Welsh side with two Irish commentators. The Welsh side is sponsored by a local recycling centre. If Welsh rugby is to get anywhere it needs to align itself with where the money is, which is England. Joining Welsh, English and Scottish rugby would build a league inestimably more valuable than any current league the constituent clubs operate in, from sponsorship, attendance and finding a proper broadcast partner. Proper management should see this league valued at least at that of the third tier of English football, around a quarter of a billion, not the current £80 or so million. The business lesson ? Select the most valuable market to play in rather than just getting by in an inadequate market.