In this special live episode of the Behind The Badge podcast, Arnaldo Garcia, Director of Marketing of Coritiba, discussed how Brazilian football is on the verge of a commercial evolution.

Garcia was joined by co-hosts George Harborne and Fernando Noodt in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at the recent SBC Rio Summit inside the Windsor Convention & Expo Centre, revealing discussions surrounding the reformation of the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A.

Football clubs in Brazil have long been discussing coming together to commercialise the league in order to attract further sponsorship and enhance media rights valuations, to make a league that is indicative of the countless of footballing talents it produces each year.

This also led to Garcia discussing how the ownership models for most of the clubs in Brazil are changing. Coritiba is one of these clubs, and Garcia outlines how private investment has enabled the club to fund different aspects of Coritiba and enhance its overall brand.

There was also the timely conversation surrounding sports betting in Brazil, as President Lula officially regulated the sector last January to open up a new revenue stream for Brazilian clubs to gain sponsorship deals with operators.

Garcia described that the gambling sector in Brazil will become a more “solid segment” but will prove to be one of the more “important industries” for football when it comes to sponsorship revenue and its maturity over time will only add to that.

There was also time for some general football chat, as Garcia revealed that the club is primarily focused on returning to Série A via promotion.

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The latest episode of the Behind The Badge podcast heads over to sunny California where Orange County Soccer Club has continued to defy odds in the US Soccer League Championship.

Dan Rutstein, President of Business Operations at Orange County SC, spoke to co-hosts George Harborne & Callum Williams on how the club has overcome a court battle against city rivals LA Galaxy and how it is aiming to become a talent factory for some of North America’s promising players.

Before that, Rutstein opened up on his ‘non-linear’ journey to Orange County SC, from a sports journalist, to a UK government diplomat, whilst still remaining an avid AFC Wimbledon fan.
He then revealed the ‘unique business model’ and the ‘boundless opportunities’ presented in the US soccer landscape that continues to grow in size and interest.

But what Rutstein may have not seen coming that would ultimately grow the soccer club even further was the court battle and subsequent win over LA Galaxy to retain the rights for its home stadium backed by an outpour of fan support, culminating in a victory over LA Galaxy II in a momentous and historic victory.

Rutstein also delved into how its fan ownership model is helping supporters grow more attached to the club, the scouting network it has established in being able to grow and sell players to the likes of Rangers FC and Feyenoord, and a recent kit deal with Hummel have all contributed to growing the club commercially.

There was even time towards the end to discuss the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted in the US, Canada and Mexico and what the tournament will mean for the sports growth in the US, with Rutstein describing every game as a Super Bowl fixture.

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In the latest episode of Behind The Badge, Mike Harris, Chairman of Welsh football club The New Saints FC, dropped by to talk to George Harborne and Joe Streeter about the club’s success since becoming Chairman of the club in 2003

Harris began his involvement in football ownership and came up with the unique branding idea of naming a football club after his business, Total Network Solutions FC. Despite the club name being changed once again in 2006 to the The New Saints FC after selling the club to BT, Harris remained as Chairman and guided the club to becoming the most successful Welsh team in history.

With national success came a daring venture into European football, with Harris being at the forefront for further Welsh football participation into UEFA competitions. This has led to some famous matches for the club, such as hosting Liverpool FC in a 2005 UEFA Champions League Qualifying match in which despite losing, raised the club’s profile further.

This is in no small part down to how Harris and TNS, along with Welsh football clubs, have grew the league commercially over the years and Harris gave insight into how it became where it is today, and what aspects it can improve on to grow further.

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