Sports Marketing & Sponsorship - FIFA/CIES International University ...

Interview with Orlando SalvestriniINTERVIEWNW: Yes. I went to one of the Copa Libertadoresgames and the atmosphere was intense. It made thehairs stand up on the back of my neck and it seemedthat everybody in the ground wanted to contribute tothe spectacle, and I was in a seated area! Talkingspecifically about Boca Juniors, what do you thinkare its key brand attributes?OS: Let’s start with the role of the supporters, whichfor us is very important. We carried out some researchto compare the socio-economic background of ourfans with those of other clubs in Argentina. We founda high percentage of upper-middle class fans, a lowpercentage of middle class fans and then a highpercentage of working class fans. Other clubs had amuch higher percentage of middle class fans. It wouldappear that our working class and upper-middle classfans have no problem in showing their love of theBoca brand by wearing Boca colours. A Boca fan willalmost wear club colours in an exaggerated way inorder to show their passion. They paint their faces,wear wigs, wear yellow and blue clothing and carryscarves and Boca banners. The Boca brand thereforestands for loyalty, identification with the club andidentification with other fans who make up the Bocatribe. It also represents an escape from some of theeconomic and social problems that people face on adaily basis.NW: What would you say is Boca’s global appeal?OS: Boca is a global brand in its own right, and as aresult of winning the World Club Championship onthree occasions, it is one of the most important clubsin the history of football. Boca attracts fans from allover Latin America and many of its fans haveemigrated overseas in search of a new life. Boca’sgames are shown to audiences of 40 million people inChina and regularly shown on Japanese television.Perhaps our biggest overseas following is in Mexicoand the USA, principally in Los Angeles, Miami andNew York, where Boca has a presence throughtelevised games. The main problem for us is that wedo not have a global commercial presence, comparedto clubs like Real Madrid, Juventus, Barcelona,Manchester United, Milan and Chelsea. Footballpeople globally are aware of Boca’s heritage and theimportance of the classic derby which we play againstour great rivals River Plate. Gavin Hamilton wroteabout this game in the Observer in April 2004 andsaid that it was possibly the most passionate derby inthe world. We are also recognised by the fact that weare an Argentinian club and through the respect thatpeople have for our national side. We have a globalicon in the form of Diego Maradona, who not only is aglobal ambassador for us but also typifies the passionthat I talked about earlier. Diego Maradona and BocaJuniors are inextricably linked. We know also throughthe hits on our website that we have a significantglobal presence. It is this global appeal that we arelooking to further develop with an increased mediapresence.NW: How do the TV contracts negotiated in Europecompare to those signed in Argentina?OS: It is clear that we need to renegotiate the TV dealsigned by the Argentinian Football Association (AFA) inorder to bring more money into the game. BocaJuniors are on television nearly every weekend, andduring the week in cup competitions, but this isn’treflected in the money we receive as part of the deal.With more money we can keep some players, put onmore of a show and then look to compete in worldmarkets. The new TV deal signed in the PremierLeague is likely to mean that more Latin Americanplayers will be sold to British clubs, which will furtherweaken our squad. If you compare our TV revenueswith an equivalent club in the UK, like Arsenal orManchester United, who also play in the ChampionsLeague, they are insignificant.NW: Faced with the need to generate more revenue,where will your future income come from?200International Journal of Sports Marketing & Sponsorship ● APRIL 2009 ●