Buying your way in: Brazil’s biggest football club internationalization strategy

Abstract

Currently, most successful football clubs are global brands, but mostly from developed regions. This teaching case concerns an emerging market football club wanting to become a global brand. Flamengo, a Brazilian football club with a long history and tradition in football, not to mention a large fanbase, was one of the powerhouses of Brazilian football and felt ready to take the next step. But how could they become a global brand when they are not part of a major global league? How and where should they begin? With these discussion questions as background, students will learn about two important internationalization theories: the Eclectic Paradigm and the Network Approach.