Ehe Spanish soccer exports talent on the field (players); benches (coaches); offices (sports directors) … and at the executive level, plot of Lorenzo Perales (Madrid, 1972), recently appointed as the new commercial director of the gigantic CBF, the Brazilian Soccer Federation.
Lorenzo forged his career at Real Madrid, a club in which he spent 17 years (2000-17) and where he led the commercial transformation of the white entity under the presidency of Florentino. The entity went from billing 100 million euros to 750. The CBF registers about 140 ‘kilos’ a year, and the idea is to contribute for more modernized structures.
“My challenge – Lorenzo tells us from Rio de Janeiro – is modernize the commercial structure of the CBF. Brazil has traditionally lived off its sporting successes, but the pandemic has accelerated the change of model. We have to be closer to our customers and that is done through the technological revolution. “
Perales’s challenge is huge. The CBF is a very endogamous giant that opens up, almost for the first time, to a European talent to catch up on its relationship with the fans: “A 15-year-old boy can no longer endure 90 minutes in front of television watching a complete game Nowadays, if you don’t entertain the audience, the consumer goes to other content. My goal at CBF is to export more fun football through technology. ” Its potential local audience is 210 million inhabitants, which are the fifth most populous country in the universe, although the idea is to increase the international echo.
“They are different models, but in Madrid, Florentino marked us the path of success “, Lorenzo tells us from his office. Therefore, transferring the Spanish example of centralization of TV rights is one of the essential points. In the Brazilian Serie A, the clubs have their rights and it is reasonable for them to be collective for a more equitable distribution: “That implies a change of model, but we must make a more attractive League. They have to see us as a modern entity.”
The ‘Seleçao’, five-time world champion, is the star product of the CBF, with Neymar, ‘Case’ … “Football has changed. It is not only worth the players to perform on the pitch, but they must be examples outside. We count on them,” he concludes.
