The second edition of the Thinking Football Summit is already a month away and the Director General of Liga Portugal Comercial has opened the doors for us to take a peek at what’s coming – not just for three days (7, 8 and 9 September), but in a more can in time and comprehensive in the spectrum of action: there are projects and plans to unveil
• Photo: Vítor Chi
RECORD – After a first edition, last year, what balance do you make and what expectations are there for the new Thinking Football?
JOÃO MEDEIROS CARDOSO – The balance is extremely positive and largely exceeded the expectations we had for a ‘zero edition’. The truth is that it was an event with no history, at the time, very ambitious in terms of programming, the involvement of industry stakeholders and also the fans, but the truth is that it largely exceeded our expectations, as shown by the numbers. that we had in the last edition, with more than 15 thousand participants, more than 250 speakers, 80 conferences… These are numbers that make expectations high, given the success of the first edition.
R – At what level do you set the bar now?
JMC – The bar is very high, it has to be. Obviously, it is an event that still has a lot to grow. It’s good not to forget that we’re only starting the second edition, but that doesn’t limit our ambition. I would say that this event is part of the entire internationalization strategy of the League, because it brings extremely important international speakers and ‘stakeholders’ with regard to the discussion of the industry and, eventually, even positioning the event, in the near future, on an international stage – and there are multiple chances of doing so. For now, this is not the focus, but rather to sediment, position and consolidate what is the biggest event, at national level, for the discussion of the football industry, but the ambition does not stop here: we want it to be a reference in terms of international events, such as the World Football Summit, in Spain, or the Leaders, in London. We want it to be an event to discuss the football industry on an international scale.
R – When we talk about an international scale, do we mean Brazil, for example? Or are there more attractive and interesting markets to approach?
JMC – There are many markets. Brazil is a natural market, I would say, because of the existing interconnection, because of the community, because of the history, because it is the origin of many players who play in our League. We had a presence, through our president, in one of the reference events, in a summit in São Paulo, a little similar to the Thinking Football Summit. There is a natural link with Brazil, but we are not limited to that market. There are a number of markets that are very interesting in terms of Liga’s internationalization project, for different reasons. There is no limitation to a specific market and there must be a segmented and diversified strategy taking into account the specificity of each of these markets and what they have to offer.
R – What are, basically, the purposes of this event and the dimension it intends to reach?
JMC – Football is today an industry and a business activity that has a significant weight from an economic point of view, on a global scale or internally. On a national scale, we have been mirroring and highlighting the impact that we have even in terms of GDP with the yearbook that we have been launching. Like other business activities, it is normal for this type of event to take place, in view of the debate and necessary reflections, even to converge strategies for the future. This event has a particularity: it is not only aimed at the ‘stakeholders’ of the industry itself and the intervening parties (players, coaches, managers, ‘broadcasters’, etc., etc.), but also has a very strong component with the relationship with the supporter, with the families. There are countless ‘fun engagement’ activities and here our commercial and strategic partners play a key role. It is one of the differentiating factors compared to other summits and other industries. We have a component that is very focused on corporate and industry discussion, but also a component for families, with activities. There is no smaller place for the adept, on the contrary. It is this integrated vision between the professional part and those who consume our product that guides us and everyone’s contribution is fundamental.
RECORD – After a first edition, last year, what balance do you make and what expectations are there for the new Thinking Football?
By Mario Duarte
2023-08-06 02:46:50
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