Following our re-design of Southampton’s stadium store, we looked at challenges facing Football Brands and how these pinch points could become opportunities. Discover how changing landscape of football brands requires new ways to optimise channels and maximise engagement. The report centres around three pertinent questions: 1. How are football brands ensuring their channels are optimised to stand out in the competitive market and their alternative revenue streams are maximised? 2. Are football brands effectively planning to attract and engage both new and existing markets? 3. Elevating fans experiences and encouraging advocacy has great kickbacks, are football brands achieving this? The paper also references cross-sector examples of successes that are relevant to this niche marketplace, offering inspiration through alternative ways of engaging.

1. © Green Room 2016
The Future of
Football Brands
2016/17 marks another landmark year in the development of British
football. As the world’s top managers join the Premier League
and star players follow, focus on the English game continues to
grow. With more money, new stadiums and sponsors, off-field
developments are also matching the action on the pitch.
As investment floods into the sport, stakes become higher,
commercial relationships more complex and supporters more
demanding. Growing access to the global market of sports fans
challenges club’s brands to stand out to attract and react quickly
to increasingly demanding and diverse supporters.
The impactful influence of money
The need to build meaningful connections with fans
A continuing increase in consumer expectations
In the following pages, we will unpack these challenges
in more detail and examine the opportunities they create.
We would love to hear your thoughts and opinions.
We see three key challenges facing football
club brands in the coming years

2. © Green Room 2016 2
More money
creates greater
disparity
01_
This season sees the first year of the new Premier League
TV rights deal and with it another influx of money into the
league and English game in general. Transfer spending
continues to increase to record levels and the Premier
league has the world’s most expensive player for the
first time since Alan Shearer.
But rather than making life easier for clubs, the influx of
more money is predicted to further widen the class gap
between ‘tiers’ of clubs. With every team receiving the
same cut of TV money, alternative revenue streams will
be more important than ever.
Within this landscape, it can be easy only to look at each
other for inspiration. In a market defined by competitive
success, chasing your rivals can make it hard to
differentiate your club consistently with only a few
trophies up for grabs each year.
The continuing influx of money also has the potential to
affect fans relationship with their clubs, with rising ticket
prices and club & player affluence creating a lifestyle
gap that can be hard to bridge.
The issues_
How are you ensuring that your
brand is optimised to stand out in the
competitive market and your alternative
revenue streams are maximised?
01
League wide increase
in TV money putting
a greater emphasis
on alternative revenue
streams
02
FFP continuing to
drive the need for
higher revenue
03
‘Tiers’ of teams being
reinforced through
financial power
04
An emerging need to
differentiate within a
success obsessed
market
05
A growing sense of
resentment in sections
of support that money
is more important to
the clubs than them

3. © Green Room 2016 3
The
opportunities
01_
Green Room see a number of exciting
ways to meet these challenges:
Build a compelling brand based on more than
just competitive success that differentiates
you from the crowd and resonates with your
values & fans
Create a more connected and engaging online
experience that attracts and retains fans to
your digital channels and retail offers
Maximise the match-day revenue
potential of your assets:
• Increase retail efficiency & engagement
• Increase hospitality uptake & retention
• Activate your passive spaces; concourses, exterior
spaces and touch-points outside the stadium
Activate your asset portfolio away
from match-days:
• Retail & hospitality opportunities
• Training ground & academy
• Players & staff
_Borussia Dortmund
BVB’s belief in putting fans first is simple, however
it has positioned them as one of the best and
most veraciously supported clubs in Europe.
Controlling ticket and beer prices has meant that
whilst their match-day revenue is 50 times smaller
than top Premier League clubs, their 80,000
seater stadium is always full and their fans are
happy.
The appeal of the club is so great (and prices so
good) that 800-1000 supporters travel from the
UK to watch every Dortmund home game.
_The Flagship Store
The Flagship Store at New Meadowlands
Stadium is an excellent example of efficient
and flexible retailing. In addition to dealing
with huge match-day footfall the store also
has to contend with serving both the New
York Giants & New York Jets.
Using dynamic digital content, projection,
lighting and highly flexible fixtures, the store
can switch between team modes efficiently
or host both when they play each other.
_Hotel Football
Set up by members of the ‘Class of ‘92’,
Hotel Football offers fan an experience
specifically targeted to their need, allowing them
to immerse themselves into the world of football
for a whole weekend.
To help publicise its opening the owners filmed
an impromptu 5-a-side game on the roof of the
hotel during construction between themselves
and the builders.

4. © Green Room 2016 4
Southampton FC
Stadium Store
Our case
studies
01_
To help deal with huge match-day
peaks in footfall, a fluid, easily
navigated and efficient store
design was created, giving back
crucial pre-match waiting time to
the fans.
A rich narrative was created to
amplify the club values, engage
fans and encourage them to
explore the merchandise.
For The North Face, ‘Bringing the
outdoors in’ was achieved through
the careful placement of tactile,
natural and contextual references
within the retail space.
The #NeverStopLondon
community was also born from the
retail space, engaging advocates
to amplify their enthusiasm for
the brand.
The North Face
Flagship Store

5. © Green Room 2016 5
The issues_
Growing &
maintaining
a fan base
02_
In the highly competitive marketplace, revenue
development is inexorably linked to the growth and
development of a fan base.
The Premier League has established itself as a global
leader, opening doors to new markets for British clubs.
However, within these markets, there are challenges to
overcome. Clubs are not just competing with each other
to stand out but also against clubs with an established
global presence.
Closer to home, there is the growing challenge of
attracting a local youth market with diverse interests and
higher expectations. Digital literacy mixed with global
awareness and cheap travel mean young supporters can
support Barcelona almost as easily as Bristol City.
Against these challenges, it’s easy to forget about the
heartland supporters whose needs may differ from those
of the emerging fan. Cautionary tales abound of clubs
taking the focus off their core, creating toxic relationships
and silent stadiums.
How are you planning to
attract and engage these new
and existing markets?
01
The need to
build a presence
in competitive
overseas markets
to grow additional
revenue streams.
02
Challenges of
attracting the
emerging youth
market.
03
Increase in consumer
non-football
interests vying for
entertainment spend.
04
Increased desire from
fans for connection
and engagement; a
dialogue rather than a
passive relationship.
05
The need to keep the
heartland
happy against a
landscape of change
and development.

6. © Green Room 2016 6
The
opportunities
02_
Create more compelling experiences
and engaging interactions for fans
both in the physical and digital realms
Take the experience of your club with
you when you travel with mobile retail,
hospitality and fan experiences
Create greater interaction and
dialogue between club and supporter
through digital platforms, activation
events and physical experiences
Maintain strong connections with the
local supporter base through local
activation activities and fan forums
Green Room see a number of exciting
ways to meet these challenges:
_FC Barcelona New York HQ
To help support the club’s push into North
America, FC Barcelona have opened a
new flagship HQ on Park Avenue, NYC.
The HQ will support the clubs US academies
as well as forging stronger partnerships with
its brand partners and focussing on building
its supporter base in America and beyond.
_Facebook Sports Stadium
Facebook has launched Facebook Sports
Stadium, a new platform that allows fans
to experience and interact with events.
The social discussion and debate within the
hub is as much of an attraction as following
the event itself, providing a platform for fans
to air their thoughts and interact with others
with similar (or opposed) points of view.
This creates a great opportunity for
teams and brands to engage with fans
in a live and relevant environment.
_Hashtag United
An amateur team who are watched
every week by over 500,000
fans and will be featured in the
upcoming Football Manager game.
Using YouTube as a platform,
Hashtag take a unique approach
to football with heavy influence
from gaming and social media to
create ‘challenges’ and exhibition
style games that attract a huge
following to their YouTube channel,
Instagram and Twitter accounts.

7. © Green Room 2016 7
Our case
studies
02_
This small store has a
spectacular following, achieving
substantial online presence
through it’s regular ‘retail
theatre’ events, in collaboration
with players, brand launches,
events and competitions.
The space also demonstrates
great re-purposing of content for
use within a physical environment.
The new decentralised marketplace
encourages ‘anywhere retailing’.
Pop-up retail is therefore
on the rise, particularly if it
incorporates memorable
experiences and a digital halo.
The Flyknit Experience travelled
across Europe, engaging customers
and creating advocates.Pro Direct
Flagship Store
Nike
Flyknit Experience

8. © Green Room 2016 8
The issues_
Keeping up
with supporter
expectations
03_
The fairy-tale story of Leicester City’s 2015/16 season
ignited the imagination of football fans across the globe,
generating renewed belief in the romance of the game
but also heaping pressure on other teams to match
their heroics.
Whilst this has put huge pressure on teams to perform
miracles on the pitch, supporter expectation of their clubs
off the field has been growing over the last five years.
With other retail and hospitality sectors taking leaps and
bounds forward in the level of their consumer experience,
football may be in danger of being left behind.
From personalised retail experiences to interactive theatre,
secret dining experiences to digitally enriched galleries,
fans are engaging with highly immersive & emotional
experiences that are setting their expectation levels.
How are you elevating your fans
experience of your brand?
01
Perception of
increased money
within the game and
rising prices driving
expectations
02
Consumer
experiences from
other sectors setting
the benchmark
03
Need to challenge
other sectors for
fans ‘entertainment
budget’
04
Need to keep
pace with sector
leaders within the
football market

9. © Green Room 2016 9
Connect your physical spaces with your
digital channels, online platforms and
forums to deliver a holistic experience
The
opportunities
03_
Elevate your retail and hospitality offers to
deliver narrative that creates connection
to the club in addition to efficiency
Enhance your digital presence to deliver
the emotion of match day and connect
remote fans with the feeling of the club
Activate the unexpected spaces in your
stadium such as concourses to create a
more emotionally charged experience
Elevate your customer facing spaces
through expressive sensory branding
Green Room see a number of exciting
ways to meet these challenges:
_FC Barcelona In-store Digital
Barcelona’s FCBotiga store offers customers
a digitally enriched experience, leveraging
their strong digital credentials to create a
seamless online/offline experience for visitors
through dynamic and engaging content.
Included in the store is ‘Digital Locker’, a platform
that allows customers to instantly view what their
personalised shirt would look like as well as ordering
and paying for it at the same point. The platform drove
a 22% increase in sales in the first three months.
_Levi’s Stadium
Home to the San Francisco 49ers, the Levi’s
stadium uses a range of technology innovations
to improve its fans experience of the stadium.
Stadium-wide wifi allows fans to remain
connected while Bluetooth beacons can guide
fans to their seats, whilst the app helps guide
fans to bathrooms & concessions with the
shortest queues, enables food to be delivered
to their seats, manages their tickets & parking
as well as giving access to instant replays.
_Secret Cinema
From small and simple beginnings Secret
Cinema have grown and refined their model to
deliver deep, immersive and emotionally charged
experiences to thousands of customers a night.
Using actors, stage dressing, sensory immersion
and a flair for the dramatic they have elevated the
cinema going experience from stale popcorn and
sticky floors to a memory forming experience.

10. © Green Room 2016 10
Our case
studies
03_
Working alongside a consumer
psychologist, our exhibition
stand was designed to provide
the most compelling experience
for visitors to our stand,
surprising and delighting.
Digital interactions were
omnipresent and instinctive,
but not overt as we challenged
ourselves to design without
screens being a focus.
Challenge yourself in one of
three digitally immersive games
built for the retail space.
As well as product trial, retail
theatre, and emotional engagement,
the interactions also had a 40%
opt-in rate for social media.
Green Room
Retail Design Expo Stand
Sun & Sand Sports
Flagship Store

11. © Green Room 2016
If you would like to discuss these
ideas further please do get in touch:
Studio
p: 0121 200 2828
105 Assay Studios, 141-143 Newhall Street, Birmingham, B3 1SF, UK
Prinsengracht 463-HS, 1016HP, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
41 Corsham St, London, N1 6DR UK
www.greenroomdesign.com
Thank you