India is a very important potential market for football - Schalke 04 Board Member Alexander Jobst

The German marketing expert revealed lots of interesting facts and figures about the Bundesliga.

“We have addressed India as a very important potential market,” said Alexander Jobst, Board Member, Marketing and Communications at Schalke 04, during a recent media interaction.

The past year has been an exciting one for Indian football fans, as many top flight European clubs have shown interest in the domestic market, while some of them have even gone on to establish strategic partnerships with Indian teams.

Not that partnerships like these are new to Indian football, but the rate at which domestic clubs are attracting foreign investors, is a sign of the development of the game in the country.

“In our recent meeting, we discussed about China and the USA, but in my personal opinion for India, the infrastructure for professional football must be given.”

“If our first-team travels to the country, we need to ensure that they return saying ‘India was fantastic and we want to go back,’” added the German marketing expert.

Schalke have one of the loudest fan bases in Germany

Jobst went on to explain how it is necessary to ensure that the players receive good exposure and how the trip needs to fulfil their expectations. 

“From footballing perspective, I believe India is amazing about football, but then we have to make sure it is also successful. In such case, the Bundesliga and Schalke will come to India and I must say it will not take many years, but very soon.”

Moving on, the executive began discussing the working model of Schalke, the professionalism of Bundesliga clubs, Real Madrid and more.

Schalke is one of those clubs from the Bundesliga, who work along their own unique model. For years, the club has built up a strong commercial base and it is worth mentioning how they are managing to compete against the top teams at not just the domestic level, but at the European level too, without having a share of any foreign investors.

“Many German clubs have began to accept foreign investors and it is becoming more and more difficult to stay amongst the top sides,” asserted Jobst.

When asked about whether Schalke are looking for foreign investors themselves he said, “This is something we will be discussing in the coming years, whether to be a successful club and be amongst the top sides in Europe or whether to continue like we are doing now.”

Further, Jobst addressed the revenue model of the club, revealing that it generates around €6-8m per year in net income. “With broadcasting of matches we generate around €120-150m depending upon the national or international games. Then around €95-100m comes in through sponsorships and merchandise and the rest comes through ticketing events.”

Later the official expressed another interesting opinion saying, “In terms of professional way of working, the top teams in the Bundesliga are much more efficient than those in Spain, particularly Real Madrid.”

Before coming to Schalke, the German was associated with Los Blancos and explained how he still admires the working mentality of the Spanish giants. That they are very proud of themselves and believe they are the best in the world, is something to learn from.

“The fact at Schalke is that we are not a global brand yet and we need to have the ambition to be amongst the top clubs in Europe,” he asserted.

Speaking on the Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules implemented by UEFA, Jobst stated that it has a very important role to play in football. “It is always the case that the big clubs progress a lot faster as compared to the small clubs.”

“About the FFP, it is not being implemented as we expect it to be and that is something we are addressing to UEFA. Whether or not a club is engaging foreign investors, it is necessary to look at it in an economical way, otherwise it will not be a fair competition of football.”

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Lastly, Jobst explained the culture of the Bundesliga and how it defines success. “First of all, it's about the enthusiasm in people. Enthusiasm involves engagement of the people and about enjoyment. It also involves tension about the competition and we at Schalke and other clubs, share this vision of the Bundesliga.”

“Beyond these attributes, there are many mentalities and cultures in German clubs and they all lead to the same thought that ‘Football connects people,’” he added while concluding.