#16 '24: WC2031, WreMXham, EPL salary cap, and more!

TOP-3 HIGHLIGHTS

#1 THE "HYPER-GROWTH WINDOW" JUST?STRETCHED TO 2031

The US and Mexico have withdrawn their bid to co-host the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup (WWC) to focus on the 2031 edition. Last year, South Africa also withdrew its bid to host the tournament in 2027 to focus on bidding for the 2031 WWC instead. It now leaves a joint submission by European nations Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands and a sole bid by Brazil as the remaining candidates. The host(s) of the 2027 WWC will be decided through an open vote by the FIFA Congress in Bangkok, Thailand, on May 17.

#2 A WORLD LEADER IN SOCCER / FOOTBALL

Speaking at a media roundtable in Leipzig during a visit to Germany, Don Garber, the commissioner of Major League Soccer?said: “The US market is the most valuable commercial market in the world. The world looks at the North American sports marketing model as being best in class, and that benefit that we can provide to other clubs, hopefully within the MLS family, is going to benefit both Major League Soccer and the respective clubs. (...) We are a very large market, we raised the commercial value of soccer around the world, both with media like the Apple deal, our commercial dynamic, what we’re doing with marketing and social media, and all the technology that we have. That's where we're a leader."

#3 THE WALES-MEXICO CONNECTION IS IN THE US

According to?Variety , after?Wrexham's?Success, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney just bought a stake in Mexico’s Club?Necaxa. A couple of days later, Sportico reported that?some of Club Necaxa’s backers purchased 5% of Wrexham AFC.?The reciprocal investment was done?by an entity controlled by Al Tylis who, together with Sam Porter, purchased NX Football USA in 2021 -- NX Football USA owns about 50% of Club Necaxa and its investors include actress Eva Longoria, MLB star Justin Verlander, model Kate Upton, NFL player Odell Beckham Jr., and former German player Mesut ?zil.

Other relevant industry news

US

Indianapolis mayor Joe Hogsett launched an MLS expansion bid and the city's plans to develop a new stadium.

MLS' New York City FC has chosen Legends to manage sales for the venue’s suites and premium seats.

U.S. youth international player Cavan Sullivan, 14, has signed a historic deal with the Philadelphia Union, per The Athletic and read by me via the FOS newsletter. Sullivan will play for the MLS team until he turns 18, at which point he will transfer to Manchester City, which will pay up to $5 million for his rights.

Sportfive, the international sports marketing agency, has announced the renewal of its partnership with the 2024 Soccer Champions Tour,?which will run from July 27 to August 6, featuring soccer heavyweights Chelsea, Manchester City, AC Milan, Real Madrid, and Barcelona in six matches held at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, Yankee Stadium in New York, Soldier Field in Chicago, the Camping World Stadium in Orlando, the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, and the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.

UK

Check out this short & interesting piece by?Huddle Up ?about how the new?salary cap structure is "the first step in what we’ll call the Americanization of the?Premier League".

BetMGM has agreed a multi-year deal ?with Tottenham Hotspur?which confers branding rights for BetMGM on the training wear for the men’s team.?

Liverpool and their official global training partner AXA, the international insurance giant, have announced a five-year extension, taking?the deal up to at least 2029. The renewed long-term agreement is worth more than the ￡5 million ($6.3 million) annual sum in the existing contract.?

UK and Ireland pay-TV network Premier Sports has secured the rights to broadcast all 32 matches of this year’s Copa America.?

Man City's Erling Haaland has become a playable character in Clash of Clans -- the first in the mobile game to be based on a real person.

GERMANY

The Bundesliga will have five teams in the Champions League next season after Borussia Dortmund's 1-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain ensured Germany second place in UEFA's coefficient table for this season. Two leagues will be rewarded with an extra place through the European Performance Spots, given to the two leagues with the best average performance across the three European competitions each season and comes as part of the revamp to expand the Champions League to a 36-team competition. Italy's Serie A had already sealed the first place last month, and Dortmund's victory now means Germany cannot be overtaken by the final remaining contenders, England and France.

Bayern Munich announced the multi-year renewal of their long-standing partnership with international commercial vehicle manufacturer MAN Truck & Bus.

Bundesliga outfit Eintracht Frankfurt is making a trip to North America this summer to play several friendlies.

?

BRAZIL

After a very messy start of the season, with a blackout in the US market (which was already driving me crazy)?Fanatiz?has officially?confirmed ?that they will broadcast?Brasileirao?matches during the 2024 season in the United States and Canada. Now the only thing driving me crazy is actually watching my team play.?

??

LIBERTADORES

Mapfre, the Spanish insurance firm, has been unveiled as a new sponsor of the Copa Libertadores. The partnership, which runs until December 2026, consists of brand activations and promotions in all matches of the competition.

ITALY?

Serie B leaders Parma officially sealed their promotion to Serie A with two games to go -- the club is owned by American Investor Kyle Krause, founder of the Krause Group, who acquired a 90% share in the team in September 2020.

Campobasso has earned promotion from Serie D to Serie C for the 2024/25 campaign. And what do you care? Well, the team is currently co-owned by American celebrity couple Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa, together with?North Sixth Group, an investment firm headed by Matt Rizzetta, who?also currently owns new USL side Brooklyn FC.?

SPAIN

Pedro Rocha has been elected as president of the Spanish football federation (RFEF) despite being under investigation as part of an ongoing corruption case. The 69-year-old had been interim president since Luis Rubiales resigned in September for forcibly kissing Spanish player Jenni Hermoso.

FRANCE

Ligue 1 has announced total revenue of €2.37 billion ($2.53 billion) during the 2022-23 season, a growth on year-on-year (YoY) for the league that saw its annual net loss decrease by more than half. All of this helped to offset a decline in broadcasting rights revenue of €22.8 million (3%), which came amid ongoing turmoil over the future of Ligue 1’s domestic and international broadcast mix. Ligue 1's net loss of €581.9 million in 2021-22 has more than halved, with the league posting a net loss of €273.2 million for 2022-23, a decrease of 53% for the league despite its embattled media rights landscape.

NIKE has retained kit supply rights to the French Football Federation (FFF) for the 2026-27 to 2033-34 cycle. The renewal covers all France men's and women's national teams, as well as youth sides, and media reports have suggested it is worth significantly more than the current agreement - set at just over €50.5 million ($54.8 million).

JAPAN

Japanese satellite TV network Wowow has retained the rights to broadcast the UEFA Champions League, as well as its second-tier UEFA Europa League (UEL) and third-tier UEFA Conference League (UECL), for the 2024-25 season.

About SOCCER FC

Soccer FC is a free weekly newsletter that I write as a hobby, where I summarize the most interesting news I've read throughout the week about the business of Global Football and US Soccer. I'm not the one writing any of these articles, therefore everything is properly linked to its original sources, making sure we all give credit and value its original writers. Have fun!