Sports Media Report
LaLiga North America today announced its partnership with Columbia University’s globally renowned Master of Science in Sports Management program, which marks the first graduate experience of this kind that the program has explored with a soccer league.
Taking place through 2021, this multifaceted partnership will allow Columbia students the unique opportunity to work directly with the best soccer league in the world and gain educational experiences in global sports marketing, digital sports media and sports analytics, all using LaLiga’s expertise. In return, LaLiga will deepen its focus in the U.S. and will be able to utilize the fresh perspectives put forward by graduate students and faculty participating in the program.
Specific initiatives within the partnership include classroom sessions on digital media, public relations, negotiations, marketing, sales, contracts, organizational background and context, and sponsorship, multiple workshops throughout the year that will provide hands on experience around LaLiga global operations, and visits to LaLiga offices, stadiums, and training facilities—in the US and in Spain.
LaLiga is no stranger to top of the line educational experiences, as their LaLiga Business School department has been developing worldwide initiatives since its inception with the aim to educate future professionals in the sports business industry. With the ideology that education is the first step to professionalization, this new partnership with Columbia University’s Master of Science in Sports Management is the first step in educating North American participants. Similarly, Columbia University’s Sports Management program is no stranger to top-level soccer. The partnership with LaLiga – along with existing ones with Real Madrid Graduate School and FC Bayern Munich – further expands the global reach of the Ivy League’s only Sports Management Program and the program’s offerings in and around the business of soccer.
“It’s an honor to be partnering with one of the most prestigious academic institutions in the world,” said LaLiga North America CEO Boris Gartner. “This is a true win-win collaboration, with LaLiga offering its expertise and students offering fresh idea that we will incorporate into our business strategy.”
“LaLiga is one of the most respected and successful professional sports leagues in the world,” said Scott Rosner, Academic Director of the Master of Science in Sports Management program. “This will be an invaluable experience for our students and faculty to work with LaLiga as they build out their strategy to grow their brand in North America.”
Students will also be eligible to receive internships at the New York office of LaLiga North America, as well as qualify to visit the Spanish headquarters of LaLiga in Madrid. The next aspect of the partnership will begin with a case study and workshop in November and December, around club expansion into US markets. This arrangement is the most recent endeavor bringing LaLiga North America’s mission to the forefront of their business strategy, which is to grow the awareness of the brand and of the sport of soccer to US audiences at a grassroots level.
