Lessons from LaLiga: Spain takeaways to guide Kenyan football to stardom

Cameroon's goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa grabs the ball during a training session in Libreville on February 4, 2017 on the eve of the final of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations football tournament between Egypt and Cameroon. / AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS

Kenyans treated to worthwhile experience during 10-day expedition.

The Kenyan Premier League All-Star team wound up their tour of LaLiga with a narrow 1-0 loss to Seville Atletico in Malaga, Spain.

The tour, organised by Spanish top football division LaLiga, brought together a team of Kenyan Premier League club chairmen and their main sponsor, betting company SportPesa.

The club officials were taken through LaLiga’s organisation, its sports marketing strategy, and how the local league can leverage on its experiences.

On the pitch, a select side from the SportPesa Premier League played two friendly matches against second division teams Cordoba CF and Seville Atletico.

Coach Stanley Okumbi was delighted by the defensive grit of his young squad against Seville Atletico – a huge improvement from their 4-0 annihilation at the hands of Cordoba CF on Wednesday.

But what are the takeaways from the tour of LaLiga?

Creation of a brand

In a two-day seminar that LaLiga organised for KPL and SportPesa, it emerged that creating a league and club brands is sacred. According to LaLiga, sports marketing should be geared towards creating sport spectacle, promote sponsors towards fans, and connect emotionally with fans.

KPL learned that they will need to leverage on the power of the media, take care of the star (players), use technology, develop merchandising strategies, and create a stadium experience to make a powerful brand.

LaLiga’s presentation encouraged KPL to exploit social media reach for with 12 million internet users, Kenya is placed fourth in Africa, well ahead of South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Algeria, Uganda, and Tunisia.

Individual clubs, according to LaLiga, should lead the way in stadium activations, promotions to grow their fan bases, and make their brand desirable.

As currently set up, Kenyan league and clubs are running on auto-pilot with none thinking it could make a profit out of the game.

TV spectacle

The local league recently signed a six-month free-to-air deal with Bamba Sport worth a reported Sh36 million.

It may not be commensurate value, but KPL needs to be on TV if it is to attract sponsors and partners.

In his remarks on Television Broadcast Regulations, LaLiga president Javier Tebas Medrano says, “Competition between sporting organisations is becoming ever fiercer and we need to be ambitious in order to increase the attractiveness and value of our audiovisual products.”

Since the era of SuperSport, the Kenyan Premier League has not endeavoured to create the attractiveness of its product. They have to start from scratch now.

The game: Coaching and player conditioning

The two friendly matches against Cordoba CF and Seville Atletico were a sobering experience. The world has moved on. Kenya is a bystander.

Malaga CF youth coach Diego Ideota, Seville coach Luis Tevenet, and Cameroon goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa were all united in the view that Kenya needs to develop players from a tender age.

The three football personalities were also of the view that the Kenyan team was aggressive and had the desire to compete.

But as it was all there for everyone to see, the Kenyan youngsters fell short.

The speed of passing, power and physicality, tactical application, mobility on and off the ball of the Spanish players means Kenya’s approach to coaching and player development must change, now.