Manchester City is on the brink of European glory once again.
Drawn 0-0 at the Estadio Metropolitano on Wednesday, the Sky Blues came out of their quarter-final match against Atletico Madrid with a 1-0 aggregate win. They advance to the Champions League semi-finals for the second time in as many seasons.
But by now, every football fan knows the bittersweet history of Manchester City football.
It is a club that has dominated domestically, winning three of the last four Premier League titles. His extravagant spending, backed by the world’s highest cumulative transfer fees, is well known.
Despite all the domestic momentum, the club has never taken home its most coveted prize: the European Cup.
Executives at City Football Group, the ownership group behind Man City and nine other football clubs around the world, know the importance of bringing home the big one.
“Playing in a Champions League final and winning it…has an impact on the perception of global fans,” says the group’s marketing director, Nuria Tarre. “We know that for an international audience, it’s important.”
However, the Manchester team is only part of the company’s history.
Expanding the world game
When City Football Group was founded in 2013, it was done with a single purpose in mind: to create a unique network of football clubs around the world.
While other sports ownership groups diversify their portfolios across multiple sports, CFG is unique in its commitment to owning only soccer teams.
“It is a strategic choice. This is the product that we know well, this is where we can have more synergies”, says Tarre. “Football is the biggest sport in the world, and we think there are a lot of opportunities just focusing on soccer, which is a huge market.”
They make the most of those opportunities by creating a product that appeals to the largest possible audience: what they call beautiful football. It’s a style that involves fast pace, skillful possession and lots of scoring.
The philosophy dictates almost everything clubs do, from player signings and academy training to manager hires and support staff preparation.
“We are very clear about the type of soccer we want to play,” says Director of Soccer Operations Omar Berrada. “The types of players that we bring in to play that system, the manager that we have in Manchester and also in our other clubs, they all aspire to play a very attractive type of football.”
Capturing the attention of neutral fans and converting them into lifelong followers has been of paramount importance to CFG.
“Young children, when they are choosing their teams… they look for that team that is winning, but also has fun scoring goals and playing attractive soccer,” says Berrada.
Winning, of course, is what keeps the cycle going. At this time, CFG has four simultaneous national champions:
- Manchester City F.C. (English Premier League)
- New York City FC (Major League Soccer)
- Melbourne City F.C. (A League)
- Mumbai City F.C. (Indian Super League)
The last three are champions for the first time.
“We really believe that this style of play is not only more attractive, but we also believe that it is the best path to success,” says Berrada.
An International Sensation
City Football Group’s success on the pitch has translated into great success off it.
With revenue of $698.2 million in 2020-21, Manchester City topped Deloitte’s Football Money League for the first time in the report’s history with the culmination of multiple revenue streams.
“On-court performance has an overall halo effect of more followers, more fans, more audience and of course more business partners interested in associating with the brand,” says Tarre.
Manchester isn’t the only source of cash flow. CFG clubs around the world have the advantage of building on the success of MCFC, while also making names for themselves.
“For the fans, it means a lot because it’s not just a copycat, it’s not a mini Manchester that goes to another part of the world,” she says. “That was definitely a potential threat when we started this model and something we’ve been very careful to avoid.”
Championships in the United States, Australia and India have contributed to the group’s overall success. CFG is not bothered by the fact that these markets are generally dominated by other sports.
“You have to think 10 years ahead,” says Tarre. “We understand that sometimes entering these markets at a time when the soccer product and leagues are not yet fully developed comes with some risk, but we do so with a lot of thought and care.”
The group has to deal not only with marketing the clubs to these initially indifferent fans, but also with creating winning products within very different league parameters than England.
- MLS, A-League and ISL operate with salary caps.
- They also use playoff formats to determine champions.
“[Those leagues] operating in a salary-cap environment, which makes team planning different and perhaps to some extent more challenging despite the resources we have here in Manchester,” says Berrada. “So, there is a lot of trust in the directors of football at the local level.”
The DNA of a champion
As Manchester City prepare to face Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final on April 26, it brings with it expectations for the entire City Football Group.
Finally capturing that title would be a crowning achievement because of course “winning matters” as Tarre and Berrada continuously reinforce. But connecting with local communities also drives the group.
“We call ourselves City Football Group,” says Tarre. “Whatever city we go to, we want to create a truly lasting impact in that city. And we want to grow in collaboration with the city”.
By establishing a deeper connection with fans, CFG ensures their success not only on the field and in the spreadsheets, but also culturally.
“We’re capturing the audience and their imagination, and we hope to make them lifelong fans,” says Berrada.
