Bayern Munich is expanding its global efforts into Latin America after carving out its space on the U.S. market over the past two years. The Bundesliga club will look to apply those experiences to new regions that, in comparison to the U.S., already have an established football culture. Rudolf Vidal, who has been heading the club's U.S. expansion since the opening of its N.Y. office in '14, will also be in charge of Bayern's push into Latin America. "The expansion will be managed from New York, but we will also likely look to hire local market experts," Vidal said. "We realize the importance and value of providing our fans and potential partners in South and Central America with the most relevant content, access and opportunities." Vidal was named Bayern Munich's President of the Americas and received a new three-year contract that will run until Feb. '20. The German side intends to use a similar approach for Latin America as it has for the U.S. and China. Bayern Munich will launch market-specific media platforms and work with its existing partners to engage with fans in the respective markets. The club is also open to explore new partnerships with leaders across various industries in those markets, Vidal said. "One fascinating fact I uncovered a few years back is that one of our largest fan clubs outside of Germany is in Mexico," Vidal told SBD Global. "Knowing that, we need to engage fans in those markets on a deeper level to match their existing knowledge of the club and sport. On the other side, Latin America is still an economically developing market, so it opens up new doors and possibilities." Since entering the U.S. market, the club has entered into six media partnerships, secured a number of commercial partners, and hosted two summer preseason tours in the country. "Latin America is an interesting market for us," Bayern Munich Board Member for Internationalization & Strategy Jörg Wacker said. "We want to engage with our existing fans in this region as well as gain new fans." Bayern Munich will open its second int'l office in Shanghai this month.
