Man City needs to take its music strategy a "step further" to enhance the football fan experience and connect with younger audiences, City Football Group CMO Nuria Tarré said at Wednesday's Leaders Sport Business Summit in London. She said, "We are working on our music strategy. Music is present in many things we do. We have a very unique around-the-game entertainment. Two hours before kickoff, [we have] live bands and interviews. We really need to go a step further in that space." Tarré said that the club -- which is based in a city with a rich history in music -- could be interested in striking new deals in the music space.
She also spoke about Man City's multi-million dollar deal with Amazon Prime for its behind-the-scenes TV series, which followed the club through its Premier League-winning exploits last season. At the time, Man City heralded the deal as a "ground-breaking project." Tarré said, "We were looking for an opportunity to produce content in a unique way. We tried to think differently. We are not afraid of showing things how they are. Amazon came to us with these incredible opportunities." She said that one gauge of the program's success was that it had been embraced by young football fans, not just Man City fans.
Asked about the rationale behind signing commercial partners, such as the multi-million pound deal with dating app Tinder it signed earlier this year, Tarre said that it was on a "case-by-case basis," but the club was attracted to challenger brands. She said that Tinder was an attractive deal, as it had a youthful audience, which she likened to Man City's fan base.
Also on the panel was All England Lawn Tennis Club Commercial & Media Dir Mick Desmond. He said that as organizer of Wimbledon, his organization tended to work with no more than 15 partners, some of which, like Slazenger and Rolex, have been longstanding partners of the club. Desmond: "But we do a huge amount with them We look at sponsors to enhance the championships."
