FC Barcelona ranked as most innovative sporting team

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Iconic LaLiga side FC Barcelona have been named by research and market intelligence firm Sports Innovation Lab as the most innovative sports team in the world, in their annual data-driven rankings.

The list is largely made up of European football clubs, who provide 10 of the teams and seven of the top 10. Behind Barcelona and Real Madrid are Premier League club Arsenal, last year’s number one Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, and Italian outfit Roma.

The list takes into account revenue diversification, technology enablement, and organisational agility to assess how teams are building their business through innovative approaches and digital initiatives.

A key factor in Barcelona’s score was its investment in fan experience and was praised for its multi-lingual social media channels, its esports teams, its data-driven fan membership programme, and its Innovation Hub.

“Many industry leaders struggle with the definition of innovation. They say ‘we know it when we see it’ but for us, that wasn’t good enough,” Sports Innovation Lab co-founder and chief executive Angela Ruggiero said in a statement.

“The ‘Most Innovative Teams’ report is the answer to that ambiguity, providing a definitive ranking based on strict criteria that identify and score what it means to be innovative.”

At present, the list only takes into account the top 10 revenue-grossing leagues around the world – the ‘big five’ European soccer leagues, the ‘big four’ North American sports, and the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The Sport Innovation Lab plans to expand the scope of its research in the near future. The organisation would also like to include women’s sports but has called for more publicly-available information that would allow for a more accurate assessment.

“There is an immediate need for more publicly-available information (that we turn into data) about what women’s teams are doing in technology, how they’re diversifying their revenue, and the structure of their organisations,” = Abe Stein, Sports Innovation Lab’s head of innovation, said in a statement.

“To put it simply, you cannot evaluate what you cannot measure, and that’s why we’ve put so much energy over the past two years into defining what it means for a team to be innovative and setting up the research method for independently collecting the relevant data.”

Nonetheless, The Sports Innovation Lab is confident it will be able to launch a women’s list within the next 12 months.

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Victory unites with Roasting Warehouse in culture-led partnership

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Image credit: Melbourne Victory

The Melbourne-based anf family-owned business will join the Victory family, uniting two institutions which represent the city’s culture and identity.

A partnership with local roots

As the newest partner of Melbourne Victory, Roasting Warehouse joins forces with a vital part of the city’s sporting landscape.

The club’s Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, outlined why the partnership bears so much value to both parties.

“We are excited to collaborate with Roasting Warehouse, a community-oriented destination for high-quality coffee, proud of its foundations in Melbourne,” said Carnegie via official media release.

“Football and coffee sit at the epicentre of Melbourne’s culture. The two go hand-in-hand, consistently at the centre of the conversation that stirs Melburnians, which is no different to the conversation sport and Melbourne Victory stir in the State.”

Indeed, this is a partnership which combines the identity, passions and culture of an entire city, therefore giving it the foundations required for long-term, mutual success.

Representing the best of Melbourne

Both Victory and Roasting Warehouse are hugely successful in their respective industries. They are institutions with community-oriented philosphies, who pride themselves on craft and quality.

“We’re incredibly proud to partner with Melbourne Victory, a club that represents the heart, passion, and ambition of Melbourne,” revealed Roasting Warehouse Head of Brand, Alexander Paraskevopoulos.

“As a Melbourne-founded, family-run business, supporting a team that means so much to the local community feels very natural for us.”

Furthermore, through their high-quality blends, Roasting Warehouse will look to prepare Victory’s players and staff for high performances on the pitch as the seasons nears completion.

But this is about far more than just fueling athletes.

This is a partnership which embodies and unites two of Melbourne’s greatest strengths and cultural markers – a connection forged from the city’s very own DNA.

 

For more information about Roasting Warehouse, click here.

Marie-Louise Eta makes history as new Union Berlin head coach

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Image credit: FC Union Berlin

In an historic appointment, Eta will take over as head coach of Union Berlin until the end of the season.

History in the making

Previously the first female assistant coach in Bundesliga history with Union Berlin, Eta will now take the reigns of the men’s first team on an interim basis.

Currently, the club sit in 11th place in the Bundesliga table, but with only two wins so far in 2026, relegation appears an all-too-real prospect, and one which the club is desperate to avoid.

“Given the points gap in the lower half of the table, our place in the Bundesliga is not yet secure,” said Eta via official media release.

‘I am delighted that the club has entrusted me with this challenging task. One of Union’s strengths has always been, and remains, the ability to pull together in such situations.”

Eta will begin as Union’s new head coach with immediate effect, and will be in the dugout for the club’s matchup against Wolfsburg this weekend.

 

A step into an equal future

Eta’s appointment signals a major step towards a more level playing field in the football landscape.

Furthermore, Eta joins other coaches including Sabrinna Wittmann, Hannah Dingley and Corinne Diacre who, in recent years, have blazed a trail for female coaches to step into the men’s game.

Wittmann currently manages FC Ingolstadt in Germany’s third division, and was the first female head coach in Germany’s top three divisions.

In 2023, Dingley became caretaker manager of Forest Green Rovers, and thus the first woman to lead a men’s professional team in England.

Diacre, now head coach of France’s women’s national team, managed Ligue 2’s Clerment Foot between 2014 and 2017.

 

Final thoughts

The impact therefore, is that Eta’s appointment will show future generations of aspiring female coaches that men’s football is an equally viable and possible pathway as the women’s game.

The time is now to level the playing field.

And while it may be a short-term role, its effect on attitudes towards equality and fair opportunities in the game will hopefully resonate long after the season ends.

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