Reports - Football Capitalist

The Cult of Disruption: Gerard Piqué, Harvard’s Elberse, and the Commodification of Sport

November 27, 2025November 27, 2025 by FootballCapitalist.com

Gerard Pique, Harvard, Anita Elberse, Sports Marketing, Sports Management, Barcelona, Kings League, Soccer, Entertainment

By Investigative Correspondent | Barcelona, Spain In the post-athletic twilight of Gerard Piqué’s career, a new archetype has emerged—not of the contemplative retiree, but of the hyper-entrepreneurial impresario, armed with institutional imprimatur and algorithmic bravado. His Kings League, a seven-a-side football spectacle engineered for virality, has been lauded as “disruptive.” But beneath the veneer of … Read more

How Sports Betting in the US and European Football Can Save Each Other — But Is It Worth It?

November 25, 2025 by FootballCapitalist.com

US Sports Betting and European Football - How can they save each other?

Introduction Two industries stand at a crossroads. In the United States, sports betting has exploded into a multibillion‑dollar market since legalization spread state by state. In Europe, football clubs outside the elite are struggling to balance books, sustain grassroots programs, and compete in an increasingly commercialized environment. The temptation is clear: betting operators crave global … Read more

The Global Value of Youth Soccer: A Decade Ahead

November 21, 2025 by FootballCapitalist.com

Youth soccer is evolving into a global industry with measurable economic impact, cultural significance, and geopolitical weight. The market for youth sports is projected to grow from USD 37.98 billion in 2024 to USD 63.84 billion by 2033, with soccer as the dominant driver. Case studies from Aspire Academy (Qatar), Right to Dream (Ghana), and La Masia (Barcelona) illustrate how different models—state-backed, grassroots, and club-integrated—are shaping the future of football. Crucially, the thousands of grassroots clubs in cities like Barcelona, Madrid, and Rotterdam form the hidden infrastructure that sustains participation and talent development. Over the next decade…

Series Part 1 — The $350 Million Bet: Arthur Blank Brings Atlanta Into the NWSL

November 21, 2025 by FootballCapitalist.com

Arthur Blank NWSL FootballCapitalist.com Football Investment

Arthur Blank is an American billionaire businessman best known as the co-founder of The Home Depot and the owner of several major sports teams in Atlanta, including the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and MLS’s Atlanta United FC.

No World Cup, no windfall: The financial fallout across North and Central America and the Caribbean

November 20, 2025 by FootballCapitalist.com

The World Cup is a once-in-a-cycle economic accelerant. FIFA’s joint analysis with the WTO projects the 2025 Club World Cup and the 2026 World Cup will add a combined $62 billion to global GDP, with 290,000 jobs created in the U.S. alone—numbers that underline how costly it is to be on the outside looking in. For Costa Rica, Honduras, and Trinidad & Tobago, missing the tournament is not just a sporting setback; it’s a shock to advertising markets, tourism receipts, sponsorship, and the game’s informal economy. In a region where football is a commercial engine and a cultural export, the hit is measurable—and painful.

The Overcommercialization of Football — And Why Fans Are Returning to the Neighborhood Club

November 17, 2025November 17, 2025 by FootballCapitalist.com

Fans and Global Football - The return of the neighborhood football club is now.

How rising commercialization, inflated matchday costs, and diluted club identity are pushing fans back to grassroots football, fueling the comeback of neighborhood and barrio clubs worldwide. Football has never been more global, more corporate, or more commercially engineered. Private equity, mega-brand partnerships, international tours, and premium ticketing have reshaped the game’s financial engine. Yet this … Read more