#30 '2024: U$A Libertadores, The Baller League, Laureus, NWSL breaking the glass ceiling, and more.

TOP 3 HIGHLIGHTS?

(1) LIBERTADORE$$$

You might not know this, but the new champion of the Libertadores and soon to be champion of the Brasileir?o Serie A is an American-owned Brazilian club: Botafogo FR. The club is owned by John Textor, who you've seen here multiple times in news related to his other clubs, such as Lyon (FR) and Crystal Palace (UK), which, by the way, he's trying to sell. Textor bought Botafogo for a bargain just over 2 years ago and, taking advantage of the lack of financial fair play in BR, injected an unprecedented amount of money in player transfers, reversing the transfer market flow by buying young players still in their prime from stronger FX countries, such as Luis Henrique from Betis (SPA) and Thiago Almada from Atlanta United (US), all hinged on his multi-club future transfer possibilities. Botafogo's?previous?notable championship had been 29 years ago, but it seems that now, under Textor and his bottomless pockets, they're just starting their winning spree. IMO (not that you asked for it), while this is fantastic for my botafoguense friends (some of whom I personally texted on Saturday congratulating for the massive feat), it should also be seen as an urgent moment for the Brazilian league to organize the rules regarding bottomless pockets of both foreign and domestic investors... But, then again, what "BR league" am I talking?about in this naive?request, if the BR clubs can't even pull themselves together to form a unified league...?

(2) THE BALLER LEAGUE

A new six-a-side football league,?The Baller League, is set to launch in the UK and US in March 2025. The league, already established in Germany, will feature a star-studded lineup of influencers and footballing legends, ranging from British YouTuber?KSI?and American YouTuber?IShowSpeed?to former players such as?Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, Micah Richards, John Terry, Luís Figo, Robert Pires, Freddie Ljungberg, Jens Lehmann?and Brazilian legend?Ronaldinho. Check out more details?here, by World Soccer Talk.

(3) LAUREUS

Check out this?piece?on?SportPro Business, where Ayelet Mavor , Minute Media ’s head of impact, discusses how the sports brands under the technology and content company’s umbrella are using their influence to champion women’s sport, challenge unconscious bias, and promote wider social change to millions of users. Minute Media was one of 11 companies recognised in the fourth edition of the?Laureus Sport for Good Index, which highlights brands who are making a positive social and environmental impact through their investments in sport.

Note from the "editor" (yes, me): I'm an employee of Minute Media and a good friend of Ayelet, which BTW makes me twice as proud of this highlight.

Other relevant news about the business of US Soccer and Global Football

FIFA?

Anheuser-Busch InBev has expanded its commercial tie-up with?FIFA to cover the revamped 2025 Club World Cup competition.?Michelob Ultra and Budweiser will lead the partnership, alongside “local brands in select markets.”

FIFA and blockchain gaming studio Mythical Games have collaborated to launch a new soccer mobile video game. FIFA Rivals, scheduled for release in summer 2025 on iOS and Android, will focus on arcade gameplay, rather than the simulation-style gameplay seen in FC 25, the Electronic Arts video game giant’s soccer game series that split from FIFA in 2023 after 30 years.

USA

Surfing the wake of the NWSL,?Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang has made a $30 million donation to U.S. Soccer, the largest gift in federation history designated for girls and women’s soccer. The gift is largely focused on youth development, where the U.S. women have fallen off from their historic dominance in recent years.

MLS franchise New York City FC?has named UAE flag carrier Etihad Airways as the title sponsor of its prospective new stadium project. The 20-year deal will see the stadium named Etihad Park upon its completion, which as of now is scheduled to be ahead of the 2027 MLS season.

Still in the MLS and coincidentally also about stadium naming rights, the St. Louis City SC franchise has announced a new partnership with battery firm Energizer, which now becomes the title sponsor of the team’s CityPark home stadium. The 22,500-capacity venue will now be known as Energizer Park, with Energizer branding incorporated into its logo across operations.

Paramount+ has announced an exciting new addition to its soccer documentary collection with “PULISIC”, a multi-part series chronicling the life and career of Christian Pulisic, one of the most prominent figures in American soccer. Set to debut on December 9, the docuseries offers a unique glimpse into Pulisic’s journey from his childhood in Hershey, Pennsylvania, to his rise as an international soccer icon representing both the USMNT and AC Milan.

US Soccer agreed to a wide-ranging Henkel brands partnership. Over 30 Henkel brands will gain visibility alongside US national teams in the lead up to the 2026 World Cup. Through the deal, Henkel becomes US Soccer’s 14th current strategic partner and the presenting partner of the federation's annual Young Player of the Year awards, and its grassroots youth community soccer clinics.

THIS WEEK THE NWSL DESERVES A SECTION OF ITS OWN?

Closing up another fantastic?NWSL?season, this year's championship game drew a?record?967k viewers on?CBS?--?Orlando Pride’s first-ever title win became the most-watched game in league history.?

Also, and as reported by?FOS, 11,250 was the average number of fans at NWSL games this season, which is a record number and a 6% increase from 2023.?Angel City FC?led the way with an average of 19,313 fans per game, followed by the?Portland Thorns?and?San Diego Wave FC, who each averaged more than 18,000 fans per game. Four teams saw increases of at least 30% in attendance: the?Chicago Red Stars, NJ/NY Gotham FC, Orlando Pride,?and?Washington Spirit. The league announced earlier this month that it had breached more than two million in total attendance this year, smashing its previous record of 1.4 million in 2023. This season, each team played 26 matches, four more than last season, as the NWSL grew from 12 to 14 teams.

Renowned journalist and industry friend Asli Pelit wrote this very interesting and complete piece for FOS about?how the?NWSL?Has Become the New Darling of Ambitious Investors. Make sure you check it out.

In related news,?SportPro Media?reported that?the?average NWSL team valuation?has risen by 57% to US$104m?--?Angel City?retains top spot of valuation rankings at US$250m, which represents an increase of 39% YoY.

Paving the path for the future,?Commissioner Jessica Berman?told reporters the league’s next team will be?selected?from?Cincinnati, Cleveland or Denver. This will be the 16th team for the league, which added two teams this past season: the Utah Royals and Bay FC. BOS Nation FC is the next franchise to come on board and will start play in 2026.?The Cincinnati mention comes just one day after reports that Indiana Fever superstar?Caitlin Clark?is joining that city’s ownership bid for an NWSL franchise.

UK

IMG will lose its long-held and lucrative Premier League broadcast production business from 2026-27 after the English top flight decided to take the operations in-house in a major blow to the agency.

Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly?is joining forces with Jonathan Goldstein, a property entrepreneur and fellow Chelsea board member, to?enter the race for a stake in?The Hundred’s London Spirit cricket franchise.

Global sports investment group Sportsbank has reportedly made a bid worth around UK￡230 million (US$298 million) for John Textor’s 45% stake in Crystal Palace, which would value?the Premier League club at UK￡500 million (US$648 million).

Premier League clubs voted to amend sponsorship rules, in a blow to Manchester City. The clubs voted 16 in favour and four against associated party transaction changes.

I mentioned?American money in one of my highlights, with the Botafogo Libertadores title. In related news, check out how FOS breaks down how and why U.S. Investors Are Gunning for England’s Small Soccer Clubs, saying Wrexham and Ipswich are perfect studies in rags to riches and how some industry experts say American ownership of third- and fourth-tier English clubs could soon reach 80%.

SPAIN?

Real Madrid ownership restructure could pave way for external investment. LaLiga club’s president Florentino Pérez seeks privatisation to attract fresh financial backing.

FC Barcelona have announced a new partnership with master systems integrator New Era Visionary Group (NEVG), the club's new official telecoms operator, to launch the club's own telecommunications service. Through the deal, which will begin on January 1, 2025 and run through the 2029-30 top-flight campaign, NEVG will work in collaboration with telecommunications giant Orange to launch Barca Mobile.

GERMANY?

Check out this interesting article on Sportcal about how?the MoU between the NFL and the DFL is helping stakeholder clubs/franchises and the leagues to grow internationally.

Beyond the simple hosting of NFL games at Bundesliga stadiums such as the Allianz, this also manifests not just in a co-branded content strategy, activations through the year, soccer tours in the US, and more commercially focused activities, but also in the sharing of data and technological innovations to enhance each other's knowledge of their respective markets while enhancing their offerings in each country.

ITALY?

Three candidates are reportedly in line to replace Lorenzo Casini as president of the Serie A:?Carlo Bonomi, Ezio Simonelli, and Umberto Gandini, with the first vote to be held on December 16.

FRANCE

The LFP governing body has unveiled a five-year artificial intelligence-based tie-up with?Israel-based WSC Sports, who will analyze every Ligue 1 (top tier), Ligue 2 (second tier), and Trophee des Champions game in real-time, and will then produce, manage, and distribute the video content produced during these fixtures.

BRAZIL

Amazon Prime Video scored a five-year Brasileir?o Serie A rights deal.

SAUDI ARABIA?

The Saudi Pro League (SPL) has entered into a long-term, strategic tie-up with OneFootball: official video and editorial content from the 18-team league will be published and then amplified across OneFootball.

Saudi PIF agreed to buy a US$2bn stake in MBC Group -- the sovereign wealth fund is set to acquire 54% of the Saudi media giant as it pivots to domestic investments.

Sportcal reports that the unopposed - and controversial - Saudi Arabian bid to host the?2034 FIFA World Cup has been given a high score of 4.2 out of 5, through a FIFA evaluation report, despite the international governing body noting risks attached to several elements of the current proposals.

APAC

The ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) has brought Malaysia-based airline AirAsia on board as a new sponsor. The company will serve as the exclusive official travel partner of the AFF’s four major national team and club events.?The partnership was brokered by sports marketing agency Sportfive, the AFF’s exclusive commercial partner.

UEFA?

Swisscom, the national telecommunications firm, has been unveiled as a sponsor of the UEFA Women’s Euro?(in Switzerland) next year.

About SOCCER FC

Soccer FC is a free weekly (sometimes bi-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 the articles I'm referencing here, therefore everything is properly linked to its original sources, making sure we all give credit and value its original writers. Have fun!