Sports Management Analysis of 2 Major Soccer Clubs

Question:-

Conduct an analysis of at least 2 major soccer clubs, why they are multinationals and what they do to be called that way (consider the following: strategies they use, worldwide expansion, followers, marketing, etc…).

Answer:-

The globalisation of football is enabling the clubs to raise funds from global sponsors by emerging as multinational brands (deporadictos.com, 2020). The key characteristics of companies include their large size and worldwide activities which are controlled by the parent company. The large football clubs also showing a tendency to control and on the production of their services in other countries. The activities of two large football clubs, Real Madrid and Manchester United, are analysed to understand the multinational nature soccer clubs.

 Real Madrid is a Spanish football club located in Madrid. The estimated worth of the club was $4.2 billion in 2019. It is one of the most supported clubs in the world with an estimated fan base of 490 million in different countries. Beyond the domestic market, real Madrid is especially popular in the UK, China, Brazil, Japan and other European Nations (realmadrid.com, 2020). The large size and global fan base reflect the multinational nature of Real Madrid.

To emerge as a multinational organisation, Real Madrid focused on hiring footballers from different countries. For instance, entry of David Beckham in Real Madrid increased the popularity of the club in the global market. Partnering with organisations in foreign markets is one of the effective entry strategies. Real Madrid also created a partnership with different global companies to enter the global market. For instance, the organisation also entered into a partnership with Legends to merchandise the apparels in the Global market (realmadrid.com, 2020). Besides, the organisation partnered with Microsoft to enhance engagement with global supporters (realmadrid.com, 2020).

Manchester United is another organisation which is emerging as a global brand. The club has fanbase on approximately 659 million across the world (www.manutd.com, 2020). To enter the global market, Manchester United used a global partnership strategy. Chevrolet is the principal partner of the club. The other partners include HCL, Marriott hotels, Apollo Tyres, Alibaba, DHL (www.manutd.com, 2020). The partnership with other organisations helps the club to enhance its engagement with the global fan base. For instance, the partnership with Chinese retailer Alibaba is beneficial to strengthen the position in the Chinese market. From this perspective, the club has become a multinational organisation.