Valencia CF were present at the Soccerex Connected congress this week, participating in one of the most renowned international conventions in the world of football. This year’s edition was held online, due to the limitations established by the COVID-19 pandemic, but nevertheless provided interaction, the sharing of knowledge and representatives from over 60 countries.

One of the speakers representing Valencia CF was Sean Bai, director of the VCF Academy and patron of the VCF Foundation. He took part in the roundtable discussion with the theme “The role of education in the professionalisation of the football industry.”

Bai detailed the model followed for education in the VCF Academy, beyond the purely football side, and highlighted the strong academic performance by young players residing at the Ciudad Deportiva. The philosophy for the VCF Academy is “We educate people and train footballers

Franco Segarra, director of Digital Innovation at Valencia CF, spoke in a panel discussion titled ‘Welcome Fan 1025689,’ in which the importance of a digital strategy with a 360º vision of the fanbase was underlined. The participants reflected on football’s position behind other industries in this regard, and underlined the importance of innovation in the use of new technology to know the fans and clients better.”

Head of VCF Media, Javier Latorre, commented on how to reach the younger generation of fans, something the club are doing through video content production. The aim is to offer content that goes beyond the strictly informative, capturing fan interest through exclusive entertainment content and a presence on all digital platforms in strategic markets, including Korea, China, Europe and Arabic countries. VCF Media has an App and Website that integrates this content and they also provide it to other media, such as international television broadcasters and digital partners).

Fabio Fusco, International Business Development Manager for Valencia CF, spoke in a Spanish league-focused talk: ‘LaLiga clubs: A journey towards new frontiers.’ This session focused on the international growth that LaLiga clubs are enjoying through the expansion into new markets around the world. Segarra ran through the work that is being undertaken to connect with the over 65 million Valencianistas around the world, with Asia considered to be one of the most interesting markets due to the presence of Kang In in the first team. The importance of

global expansion was also noted, as LaLiga play a key role in helping clubs to become global with a collaboration model between them.