Italian football club Inter Milan is preparing for an int’l offensive after its sale to Chinese retailer Suning. The 108-year-old football club announced in June that Suning purchased a nearly 70% stake in the team for a reported $307M. The new ownership is a “huge opportunity” for the club, Inter Int’l Business Dir Richard Lamb said. “I can’t emphasize how important this is,” he told SBD Global during the team’s Int’l Champions Cup game in Charlotte, N.C. “Effectively, Suning is the Walmart of China. It’s a superb platform for us to leverage and to understand the Chinese market.” The Serie A club plans to open an office in China later this year. In addition to its HQ in Milan, the club has offices in Washington, D.C., and Jakarta, Indonesia. The Italian side’s two current int’l outposts are obvious choices given that Inter President Erik Thohir, who reduced his stake in the club to 30% after the sale, is also the co-Owner of MLS side D.C. United and an Indonesian native. Thohir himself became involved in the club in ’13, when he and his business partners purchased a 70% stake in Inter for an estimated €255M from long-time owners the Moratti family. With Suning and Thohir at the helm, Inter is putting an increased emphasis on the marketing and commercial side of things. “With that ownership, we are becoming a club that is moving more toward the EPL model,” Lamb said. “We are becoming a highly organized commercial outfit ... Our strategic markets are the U.S., South America, China, Indonesia, Japan and India, where we think there’s a great deal of opportunity." Suning also owns Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Suning.
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| Richard Lamb |
AN AMERICAN SUMMER: Inter estimates it has a potential global fan base of 254 million, with the majority -- 190 million -- living in the Asia-Pacific region. To reach those int’l fans, Lamb said the club intends to produce better and more engaging content. “Top football clubs face a very unique challenge, which is we can’t just pick up the San Siro and move it across the pond to the U.S.,” Lamb said. “It’s something all clubs face. How can we help our fans in the U.S. get closer to the club? The primary way is through content, localized content.” Inter Milan has been part of the ICC preseason tournament since its first edition in ’13. And except for last year, when the team traveled to China, it has spent each summer in the U.S. The reason is America’s growing appetite for int’l football. Inter is in regular discussions with D.C. United to understand what American fans want, because it is very different from what the club’s European supporters expect, Lamb said. Inter Managing Dir Americas Walker Fletcher, who joined the club in July ’15 after stints with the MLB’s L.A. Dodgers and the Int’l Speedway Corp., is based at D.C. United’s offices. Inter will implement new strategies in the U.S. market in the coming months. However, it did not provide any specifics on those new strategies as it is still finalizing some details. Despite the challenges lying ahead, Lamb is convinced that European football has the framework in place to expand its global influence. “European football globally is in the best possible position,” he said. “European leagues are consumed around the world. Football clubs within those leagues are at a premium value. Sponsors are all top brands. It’s in a fantastic position.”
