Build It

Christos SC Sporting Director Larry Sancombe: A History of Soccer Success Christos FC is a semi-professional soccer club based in Baltimore, Maryland. The club was founded in 1984 by a group of local players who wanted to continue playing at a high level after their college careers ended. Christos FC has won seven Maryland Major Soccer League titles, three USA SA National Amateur Cup titles, and two USSA USA SA Verna Fricker National Open Cup titles. The club is also known for its strong community ties. In the conversation, we discuss the history of Christos FC and the club's various successes over the years. W also talked about the importance of community partnerships, and how the club has been able to remain successful despite the ever-changing landscape of American soccer.   Larry discusses the club's recent success in various competitions, as well as their plans for the future. He notes that the club has been able to produce a number of professional-level players, thanks in part to their strong connections with local youth soccer programs. The club is known for its connection to the MLS and for its ability to produce high-level players. Christos brothers are on coaching staffs of many teams in the Maryland area, and the club has a core group of players that come back every year. Christo's tries to make it so that the only thing their players have to pay is their initial due, and they are sponsored so that they don't have to rely on player's money to operate.

Fanbase is a new app designed to help with marketing and media for lower league clubs. We discuss why Ali and his team decided to create the app and how it can be used by clubs at our level to level up marketing and media content.  John, Nik and Ali discuss how the tool can help sports teams with ticketing, memberships, communications, and data management. Crawley explains that the tool is meant for teams that are wanting to take themselves more seriously and be more professional.

Nik and Neil talked about the digital and social media sports podcast and how it is a catch little title. Neil is always up of the mindset to that as they learn what they are learning. Neil talked about the podcast and how it allows them to reach out to people they admire and wants to meet. Neil talked about the pain of asking for podcast numbers and said that every time someone says they listen to an episode or a podcast, it blows them away. Nik and Neil talked about the most recurring theme that has been recurring through the last ten years of best practice in social media. Neil talked about needs and behaviors that always resonate and that ultimately it comes down to driving that emotional connection between fan and player or team. Neil and Nik talked about the principles that guide them even when they are ten fifteen twenty years old. Nik and John are discussing the authenticity of social media and how it does not allow you to hide north east. Neil talks about developing super fans and develops a fan spectrum. Neil is talking about getting a better feel for the team and wants to learn more about them. Neil talked about how to bring casual fans up the fan spectrum by finding ways to connect to passionate fans. Neil talked about ways to get fans interested in learning more about the event and then the sport. Neil talked about buying them into the fold and mobilizing them. John is trying to figure out how to give away the store and give fifty brand ambassadors season tickets. Neil talked about the importance of finding groups that already exist and finding who is the leader of those groups. Neil talked about using your sport as a connective tissue and using it to connect them even further. Neil is talking about the social activity they do and John is curious about your opinion of it. Neil talked about the different ways to look at the community first model and how it can create emotional connections with people. Neil talked about the impact that deep engagements have on a fan's psyche. Neil and Nik discussed the impact of human touch and handcrafted spoke. Nik and Neil talked about two things that do not scale. Neil talked about jobs that were based in a hockey team in el paso. Neil talked about the perspective of a kid and how it is easy to lose that perspective. Nik is curious about the difference between a real and a short form video and Neil explained the goals that people are trying to accomplish. Neil talked about the monetization of youtube shorts and tick talk reals. Neil talked about the difference between the audience on instagram and tick talk. Nik and Neil discussed the value of saying they are quote a tick tock brand and that it is better to spread themselves thinly. Neil talked about the value of being the best on a platform. Neil and John are discussing the sustainability of the club. Neil likes to pick the brains of the youngsters who come with some great stuff. Neil talked about tracking their marketing spend and using basic surveys and talking to their super fans. Neil is trying to take qualitative knowledge and make it into quantitative. Neil talked about figuring out who are the influencer people in your community and how to reach them more effectively. Neil talked about how takers are in the community so that they can leverage them to become super fans. Neil said that it starts with auditing your channels and understanding the community that you are up against.

Rosevelt soccer club have humble roots and lofty ambitions. From a seed of an idea borne from travels in Iceland, John Morgan has earned his stripes coaching youth soccer in all manner of places, before starting up his own club in Gorham, Maine, 30 minutes outside of Portland. Disillusioned with the exclusive nature of local youth operations, John has worked tirelessly to grow his club to nearly 200 players across all age groups. The club's 2050 initiative is the latest step on the path to bringing competitive adult soccer in Maine into the US system.

Nik, John and Dave spoke about the biggest challenges facing college graduates entering the sports management field, and how lower league soccer clubs can come to a mutually beneficial partnership with local educational institutions to provide experience in the field.

Madyson is Director Of Corporate Partnerships at Chattanooga Football Club. She joined John and Nik to talk about building relationships with businesses in your community, the importance of the personal touch.

Jentry has nearly a decade of experience working with sports organizations, and knows what it takes to streamline, maximize effectiveness and increase revenue. He nearly always has a budget, so we challenged him on what he do without one! https://www.linkedin.com/in/jentrymullins/

Join Nik and John as the chat with Brandon Jaltz from Temecula FC. From English nonleague soccer trials, through battles with local youth soccer teams, and how important community support is to his bigger mission. Brandon talked about the challenges of running a club and ensuring the support is engaged every day. difficulties of dealing with membership models as TFC try to gain additional investment. branding and the very distinctive quail on the TFC crest. perils of setting up a soccer organization where existing operations exist, particularly youth programs creating the culture that Wrexham show

Now the dust has settled on the club's inaugural season in the MWPL, how is Zach feeling? Was it all worth it? What lessons has he learned?

Michael Bochel is a freelance Sports Marketing Consultant and former Head of Digital at the Scottish FA who volunteers with his hometown club, Nairn County. Michael recently launched his own podcast, where he shares his experiences of helping out the club in his own spare time. We got Michael on the podcast because not only does he know his marketing, he knows how to get results on a volunteer budget with a volunteer workforce. We would like tp think that some of what is discussed might resonate with others who are volunteering at their local club and spark some ideas. "Marketing a Non-League Football Club" is available wherever you get your podcasts, and you really should give it a listen.