Apologies if this has been posted before.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
From the Business Times
La Liga out to topple EPL in Asian hearts & minds
By MALMINDERJIT SINGH
(SINGAPORE) Spain's professional football league La Liga aims to wrest the dominance of the English Premier League (EPL) in the lucrative Asian football market.
La Liga chief executive Francisco Roca Perez has announced plans to organise a new exhibition tournament in Asia - the International LFP Cup - to increase awareness of the Spanish league in the region.
With Sergi Vieta, football events director of Mediapro, which manages La Liga's international rights, Mr Perez explained during the inaugural Soccerex Asian Forum in Singapore yesterday that the tournament (to be held in July or August 2011) will feature three Spanish La Liga clubs and a team from the host country.
Mr Perez said he is confident of breaking into the Asian market and believes La Liga ought to be the most followed league in this part of the world because of its quality.
Mr Vieta told BT La Liga is eyeing direct advertising as well as sponsorship opportunities for individual Spanish clubs as its main source of revenue in Asia.
'Revenue from television rights will take time as we will have to make La Liga more appealing for viewers in Asia,' he said.
Indeed, La Liga will have to overcome several challenges if it is to pose a credible threat to EPL's dominance in Asia, particularly in terms of match times and language.
'To cap the distance between La Liga and Asia, we will need to change the kick-off times to make them more attractive for Asian viewers,' Mr Vieta said. Mr Perez recognised that although this may be sensitive to Spanish football, there will be an attempt to change the kick-off time of at least one game per week for the coming season to suit Asian viewers.
Both Mr Perez and Mr Vieta identified China, Japan and Korea as the key markets in Asia for their expansion, while Mr Vieta also indicated that Singapore and Indonesia will be crucial to tap into Southeast Asia.
'Although the market data suggests a big difference between EPL and other European leagues in most parts of Asia like India, in China, Japan and Korea the gap is actually small and can be bridged,' Mr Perez said.
Shoto Zhu, chief executive officer of Oceans Sports and Entertainment Marketing - which has represented clubs such as Manchester United and FC Barcelona for their China tours - told BT he appreciates La Liga's strategy of taking a long-term approach and exploring a local market and grassroots concept.
'EPL did not do well in China as it sold its television rights to a pay-TV channel,' he said. 'So while before three years ago, millions of viewers in China watched EPL, since then this figure has dropped to hundreds of thousands of viewers.'
Mr Zhu cited the example of America's National Basketball Association (NBA), which earned US$100 million in China last year, of which 80 per cent came from its 23 sponsors there.
He attributes NBA's success to grassroots work such as camps and roadshows it organises to reach out to the ground.
And he believes that if La Liga can emulate this strategy, it too could be successful in China and in other parts of Asia.
It seems that EPL clubs have recognised a need to step up their presence in Singapore, with Liverpool FC setting up a physical office in Singapore last week, according to its commercial director Ian Ayre.
'Football clubs need to grow their presence in Asia,' he said. 'It is not just about coming, playing and taking the money and leaving. It is important to reach out to the ground and treat each market here individually and with respect, and not collectively as Asia.'
Whether La Liga can be successful in Asia remains to be seen, but Mr Perez has admitted that fans in Asia may have to wait 2-3 years before they can expect to see the likes of Real Madrid and FC Barcelona play here.
So it looks like La Liga is saving the finest ammunition in its arsenal for a late salvo.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
From the Business Times
La Liga out to topple EPL in Asian hearts & minds
By MALMINDERJIT SINGH
(SINGAPORE) Spain's professional football league La Liga aims to wrest the dominance of the English Premier League (EPL) in the lucrative Asian football market.
La Liga chief executive Francisco Roca Perez has announced plans to organise a new exhibition tournament in Asia - the International LFP Cup - to increase awareness of the Spanish league in the region.
With Sergi Vieta, football events director of Mediapro, which manages La Liga's international rights, Mr Perez explained during the inaugural Soccerex Asian Forum in Singapore yesterday that the tournament (to be held in July or August 2011) will feature three Spanish La Liga clubs and a team from the host country.
Mr Perez said he is confident of breaking into the Asian market and believes La Liga ought to be the most followed league in this part of the world because of its quality.
Mr Vieta told BT La Liga is eyeing direct advertising as well as sponsorship opportunities for individual Spanish clubs as its main source of revenue in Asia.
'Revenue from television rights will take time as we will have to make La Liga more appealing for viewers in Asia,' he said.
Indeed, La Liga will have to overcome several challenges if it is to pose a credible threat to EPL's dominance in Asia, particularly in terms of match times and language.
'To cap the distance between La Liga and Asia, we will need to change the kick-off times to make them more attractive for Asian viewers,' Mr Vieta said. Mr Perez recognised that although this may be sensitive to Spanish football, there will be an attempt to change the kick-off time of at least one game per week for the coming season to suit Asian viewers.
Both Mr Perez and Mr Vieta identified China, Japan and Korea as the key markets in Asia for their expansion, while Mr Vieta also indicated that Singapore and Indonesia will be crucial to tap into Southeast Asia.
'Although the market data suggests a big difference between EPL and other European leagues in most parts of Asia like India, in China, Japan and Korea the gap is actually small and can be bridged,' Mr Perez said.
Shoto Zhu, chief executive officer of Oceans Sports and Entertainment Marketing - which has represented clubs such as Manchester United and FC Barcelona for their China tours - told BT he appreciates La Liga's strategy of taking a long-term approach and exploring a local market and grassroots concept.
'EPL did not do well in China as it sold its television rights to a pay-TV channel,' he said. 'So while before three years ago, millions of viewers in China watched EPL, since then this figure has dropped to hundreds of thousands of viewers.'
Mr Zhu cited the example of America's National Basketball Association (NBA), which earned US$100 million in China last year, of which 80 per cent came from its 23 sponsors there.
He attributes NBA's success to grassroots work such as camps and roadshows it organises to reach out to the ground.
And he believes that if La Liga can emulate this strategy, it too could be successful in China and in other parts of Asia.
It seems that EPL clubs have recognised a need to step up their presence in Singapore, with Liverpool FC setting up a physical office in Singapore last week, according to its commercial director Ian Ayre.
'Football clubs need to grow their presence in Asia,' he said. 'It is not just about coming, playing and taking the money and leaving. It is important to reach out to the ground and treat each market here individually and with respect, and not collectively as Asia.'
Whether La Liga can be successful in Asia remains to be seen, but Mr Perez has admitted that fans in Asia may have to wait 2-3 years before they can expect to see the likes of Real Madrid and FC Barcelona play here.
So it looks like La Liga is saving the finest ammunition in its arsenal for a late salvo.
And a bloody good sense of humour
Comment