Honey, we shrunk the game
Newcomers are tearing up conventions and launching faster, condensed games aimed at younger online audiences
Most fans would understand a football match to be played by two teams of 11 over 90 minutes. But famous players, influencers and venture capitalists are tearing apart conventions with shorter format competitions tailored to younger fans who follow the action online.
Kings League, a seven-a-side men’s series founded by former FC Barcelona captain Gerard Piqué, and the six-versus-six Baller League, which started in Germany and recently launched in the UK, have attracted retired football stars and millions of viewers. World Sevens Football (W7F), a women’s competition, debuts in Portugal from May 21-23, offering a $5mn prize fund.
These leagues present a faster, more condensed version of the game on smaller pitches, designed for digital platforms. Djamel Agaoua, chief executive of Kings League, says that younger fans have less patience for nil-nil draws.
“If for three, four, five minutes nothing is happening, they swipe up,” he says. “Consumption habits, because of social media, have changed a lot.”
Kings League, which was founded in 2022 and held its first season the following year, has expanded from Spain to Brazil, France, Germany, Mexico and Italy. Queens League, the women’s equivalent, operates in Spain. Baller League, which started in Germany, now holds matches at London’s Copper Box Arena, and plans to launch in the US later this year.
Amazon’s Twitch and Google’s YouTube are critical to the reach of live matches and target younger audiences. Last year, consultancy PwC warned that sports executives and investors “should take heed” of new viewing habits among Gen Z and younger millennials, highlighting shorter attention spans.
Felix Starck, founder of Baller League, has won over former professional footballers including ex-Chelsea FC captain John Terry, who manages one of the teams.
Baller League has also enlisted YouTubers KSI and IShowSpeed — who have a combined total of around 65mn subscribers on the platform — to promote the competition in the UK and the US, while 30-year-old Spanish internet personality Ibai Llanos leads Kings League side Porcinos FC.
While streamers, celebrities and former football stars take the limelight, investors are playing a key role in funding the new leagues.
The venture arm of Swedish private equity group EQT led a $25mn investment in Baller League in December. New York-based Left Lane Capital backed Kings League’s €60mn fundraising just months earlier.
Fundamental changes in the way audiences watch sports explain why investors are backing new formats, according to Vasu Kulkarni, partner at Baller League backer Courtside Ventures.
Streaming and social media platforms have allowed these start-ups to reach audiences around the world well before traditional broadcasters of the sport take notice.
The likes of Twitch and YouTube have “democratised the distribution of content”, Kulkarni says.
Left Lane, which has also backed the Freestyle Chess start-up fronted by world number one Magnus Carlsen, North America’s Pro Padel League, and the Snow League founded by snowboarder Shaun White, is betting that new ideas can win over fans and commercial partners.
“Properties like Kings League, and other investments we’re doing, are great avenues for large brands and new brands alike to reach an audience that consumes media and entertainment fundamentally differently than generations that came before them,” says Left Lane Capital chief Harley Miller.
Big brands are joining in. German sportswear maker Adidas and streetwear retailer JD have partnered with Kings League. US-based Nike and retailer Foot Locker have worked with Baller League, alongside soft drinks giant Pepsi, protein snacks company Grenade, and others.
Broadcasters are also signing up. Sky Sports, which is synonymous with the English Premier League, the world’s richest domestic football competition, agreed to screen Baller League’s inaugural season. DAZN, the UK media group owned by Sir Leonard Blavatnik and backed by Saudi investment firm SURJ, will showcase W7F.
Whereas Baller League has launched in the UK with newly created teams such as John Terry’s 26ers and the Yanited team led by YouTuber Angry Ginge, W7F is focusing on elite women’s football.
Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Ajax and Benfica have all confirmed that they will play in W7F’s inaugural event in Portugal, alongside Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, AS Roma, and Sweden’s FC Rosengård. Its player advisory council is led by double World Cup winner Tobin Heath. And prize money for the best four teams will be shared between clubs, their players and staff.
The day after W7F wraps up, Arsenal and FC Barcelona women’s teams go head to head in the Uefa Champions League final, the pinnacle of the European 11s club game, around 35 minutes away in Lisbon.
W7F co-founder Jennifer Mackesy, who also co-owns US National Women’s Soccer League team Gotham FC, points out that other sports have experimented with new formats. Earlier this year, stakes in the eight teams in The Hundred, a competition launched by UK cricket authorities in 2021, sold for hundreds of millions of pounds.
“If you look at sports in general, many are introducing short format versions, so it feels natural for it to be happening in football as well,” she says.