FROM CRISIS TO RENEWAL - THE FUTURE GOVERNANCE OF EUROPEAN FOOTBALL
Soccerex Europe 2019
The Studio | 5 September 2019 | 10:45 AM - 11:15 AM
In this session, LaLiga President, Javier Tebas will share his thought s on the development of European Football, looking at the governance structures and regulations in place and how potential changes may impact both the TV rights market and the different stakeholder groups within the game; from federations, leagues and clubs to players, coaches, technical staff and other employees.
Suggested for: Clubs & Rightsholders, Broadcasting & New Media, Performance
Speakers
Javier Tebas Medrano (San Jose, Costa Rica, 1962), of Spanish nationality, holds a degree in Law from the University of Zaragoza. His involvement in football began in 1993, when he was named president of Sociedad Deportiva Huesca. In 2001 Tebas was elected as vicepresident of LaLiga. In 2003 he was named head of the so-called G-30, a group representing 30 LaLiga clubs which worked on the joint negotiation of their audiovisual rights. Since 26 April 2013 Tebas has acted as president of LaLiga.
Upon taking up the LaLiga presidency, Javier Tebas identified his main objective as being to reduce club debts. In the space of just one year, LaLiga's efforts in this area saw the debts owed by its member clubs to the Tax Agency fall by 25%. The joint sale of audiovisual rights for the 2016/2017 season is set to see the LaLiga clubs experience a significant increase in their revenues. One of the main achievements during his term as president has been securing the centralised sale of audiovisual rights for the 2016/17 season brought in by Royal Decree-Law 5/2015, which will allow LaLiga clubs to significantly increase their revenues. Other pillars of his work are undoubtedly the fight against piracy and the fight against any kind of violence in football. He has achieved very positive results on these two fronts, as well as with the transparency policy of the organisation itself.
Innovation, technological development and internationalisation also represent other essential parts of his strategy. During these years he has increased the presence of LaLiga beyond Spanish borders, with offices in the United Arab Emirates, the United States, China, South Africa, Nigeria, India and Singapur. As a result of this internationalisation, foreign interest in LaLiga broadcasting rights continues to grow, allowing people in more and more corners of the world to watch the Spanish league.
Luis Villarejo is a hugely experienced journalist, author and sports media professional. During his distinguished career he has served as Director of Communications for Real Madrid, Chief Editor at MARCA and Director of Communications in the Sports Council with the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport. He is the author of “Raul, The Future” the biography of the former Real Madrid and Spain captain. He has been Director of Sport at leading Spanish news agency Efe since 2016.
