The Champions League winner championing sport’s SMEs | OneFootball

He won it all on the pitch, and now the legendary midfielder Andrés Iniesta is demonstrating how football’s dynamism and sense of community can drive business success.

Skill, composure and vision made Andrés Iniesta one of the most celebrated footballers of the 21st century. Now he’s applying the values he developed on the football pitch to establish himself as a successful business owner.

Iniesta was the heartbeat of the Barcelona team that won four Champions League titles between 2006 and 2015, and is the most decorated Spanish footballer of all time. He collected 35 trophies throughout his career, including two European Championships with Spain. Famously, he also scored the winning goal against the Netherlands in the 2010 World Cup final, which is the only time Spain has won the most coveted prize in football.

Now, he says he has been inspired by “the passion and the emotion” in business to enter the industry side of football after retiring from playing last year. “I felt an urge to carry on working in the game that I have been passionate about since I was little, even though I now have to do it differently,” he says. “But with the same energy and curiosity to absorb the necessary knowledge that will allow me to keep moving forward.”

Beautiful game, big impact

From broadcasting and ecommerce to fan experience and sportswear, the football industry is enjoying significant growth. FIFA estimates that there are five billion football fans globally, creating a vast audience for businesses to harness. Revenue in European football increased by 16% in the 2022/23 season, reaching €35.3bn, and Deloitte projects it will climb to €39.1bn by the end of the current 2024/25 season. In 2023/24, Real Madrid became the first football club to generate €1bn in revenue across a season, while 10 other clubs made over $500m. Football is big business.

As owner of or investor in four diverse small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within football, Iniesta can attest to the power sport has to connect businesses with a passionate and engaged audience. The Iniesta Academy is an international training programme for young players; Mikakus and Capitten are sneaker and football boot brands; and NSN is a marketing agency that connects brands with football fandom. Iniesta also founded the Bodega Iniesta winery and estate in his hometown of Fuentealbilla, Spain.

“SMEs are vital to making our industry more sustainable,” he says. “Obviously, there are big projects that need big investors, but I believe that what really makes everything tick is these types of companies, which aren’t multinationals, but they know the area in which they operate. They are local, but with a universal dimension. Or universal, but with a local outlook. And that combination is vital.”

Businesses that can tap into football’s sense of community have the opportunity to build authentic connections. Iniesta believes it’s SMEs, rather than global brands, that have the agility and personal touch to lean into these groups. “The connection with the local community is essential,” he says. “It allows you to fully understand any needs, demands or requests they may have.”

Bringing talent and teamwork together

Iniesta recently witnessed these values first hand when listening to pitches from three enterprises named in the new FedEx Champions of Business list, a collaboration between the global logistics provider and long-time football sponsor FedEx and the Financial Times, featuring SMEs that have significantly influenced football or driven innovation in the sport. The three pitches demonstrated the variety of sectors that can thrive within the football industry, covering technology that enhances scouting networks, biodigester solutions to convert food waste from stadiums into clean energy and fertilisers, and an intelligent camera system that delivers player-based performance data.

Iniesta believes a culture of embracing talent and collaboration within the football industry, as illustrated by the SMEs on the FedEx Champions of Business list, is helping to fuel innovation and drive growth. “Football instils in you [the value] of teamwork, solidarity, effort, commitment, the desire to win and to learn,” he says. “You need to work as a team, drawing on the talent of others to move forward and succeed in each of the projects you support or promote.”

The power of people

Iniesta’s playing career is synonymous with two names: Pep Guardiola and Xavi. Guardiola was Iniesta’s Barcelona manager for four years, while Xavi formed a formidable midfield pair with Iniesta for both club and country. Working with both has shown Iniesta that success is only possible if you surround yourself with the right people. “It's people who carry out ideas,” he says. “[Sharing the same] language, the same code of conduct, the same respect for the opposition, the same passion makes it much easier to build successful projects.”

Working under Guardiola also showed Iniesta the qualities needed to be a good leader, both on and off the football pitch. “The person who shouts or screams is no more a leader,” he says. “Not at all. Leadership is demonstrated, in particular, in the small details when you see that your teammates trust you. Not only for what you say, but also for what you do. Your actions must be consistent with what you’ve said beforehand.”

From scoring World Cup-winning goals to nurturing thriving businesses, Iniesta has seamlessly transferred his footballing values to the boardroom, demonstrating a blueprint for SMEs looking to harness the beautiful game’s enduring popularity and economic reach to build sustainable success.