Alex Norstrom, Spotify Chief Commercial Officer: "We wanted to be more than just a sponsor"

The agreement between FC Barcelona Y Spotify It promises to be very different from previous Barça club sponsorships and this was told to the MD Alex NorstromFreemium commercial director of the Swedish company, who stressed that in this agreement they want to combine football and music to provide unique experiences to fans.

How do you assess the deal with Barça?

Sport is a very important part of culture and football is the greatest in sport. Barça is one of the biggest clubs in the world, with almost 1,000 million fans, and this agreement allows us to get close to them. There are huge markets like India, Indonesia, Mexico, Brazil and other countries where we want to grow. The alliance was great because we combined music with football. What we do with this deal is not just put the logo on the shirt. Everything surrounding this deal is a platform for creators and musicians to express themselves. I think this is something strange and this is one of the reasons why we want to make this agreement. I was thrilled with the reception, with so many people taking photos and videos of Camp Nou. It turned out to be amazing.

What benefits does Spotify get from this alliance?

Spotify has many sponsorship deals, but only a few of the size of this one in Barça. Most of the potential markets in which we want to grow Spotify have a lot of Barça fans. It was amazing for us. Also, the ability to combine artists with players is something very imaginative and creative. It will be very useful for everyone.

How did the negotiations with Barça start?

I can’t say the details about it, but at Spotify we are always open to exciting sponsorships and have long been looking for opportunities in the world of sports. Barça are looking for a new sponsor and it is a matter of luck. It was pretty luck, but it was also a dream come true.

The agreement to sponsor the shirt is for the next four years, is there an option for more time?

We want to go beyond shirt sponsorship. We’ve done a lot of sponsorship on Spotify and there are two factors that raise it from good to great. The first is compatibility across work groups and how work is done between companies. And here I see signs telling me that everything will be fine. Second, we haven’t been in business for a few months. The fact that it is a long -term agreement makes this alliance great. We wanted to be more than just a sponsor.

They also sponsor the women’s team, what potential do you see in women’s football?

They are playing amazing. I had a chance to go to a few games and they won 6-1 or 7-1. They are an amazing team. It’s something historic to make this kind of agreement because we weren’t the only ones sponsoring the first team. No one has done that before. The mix between the athletes, the artists, the stadium and everything that surrounds Barça makes it attractive. There is a lot of interest in teamwork.

Barça did not provide the agreement numbers due to a confidentiality issue with your request, why do they not want to explain the numbers?

This is the usual way in which we do our negotiations. We did not go into the details of the agreement. This is to follow our line and protect possible agreements. The important thing is that the agreement is adopted and approved by the Barça Assembly. Huge deal for us, but we had to stick to our policy of not giving the numbers in detail.

Now that the contract is signed and valid, can you give us the numbers?

We can’t provide the numbers, sorry. We are just getting started and what I have is a huge enthusiasm for this agreement to be successful.

Were you skeptical about the alliance after a star like Messi left last year?

The truth is, no. The club has over 120 years of history and the stadium is 65. Barça is one of the most iconic clubs in the world and always has talented players. From Maradona, Ronaldinho, Iniesta and Messi to the current Pedri or Alexia. I have a lot of trust in the club and from the moment we talked they started to win as well. The future indicates that it will be successful.

In the Assembly, Laporta asked for applause for Darren Dein, what was his role in the negotiations?

Darren Dein has been a very good partner for Barça and for Spotify. Without Darren we would not have made this agreement this way. Many people contributed to making this alliance possible, but clearly Darren played a very important role.

It was learned that he was charging a commission, did Barça or Spotify pay for it?

I can’t give details about it.

Vice President Juli Guiu said there will be promotions for members, do you know what they will be?

Yes, there will be promotions and discounts for members, but they still need to be specified.

Was there a fear that this agreement could lead to rejection by fans of other teams?

We think Barça had a good social mass and for me it was the most important thing. In addition to the people who are super fans of the club, Barça is also the second team of many people. That speaks very well about the power of Barça’s attraction. We won’t make everyone happy, but what we do with this deal will have a huge impact for people everywhere.

Another part of the deal is Camp Nou’s ‘title rights’, what will be its impact for Spotify being in front of such an emblematic building?

In 65 years the name of Camp Nou has not changed and it was something very special for us to put our name on the stadium. I’ve been a few times and it’s been amazing. It is so wonderful to wear our name in a special place. Barça’s impact is global and we hope our company will have a huge impact on this agreement.

There is talk that Spotify could sell its ad space to another company, is that true?

I’m sorry but I can’t talk about it either. It is also listed in the confidentiality agreement.

There are also concerts that will be promoted by Spotify, do you have any in mind?

All I can say is that I saw a lot of enthusiasm in the players, in the club and in the artists we spoke to. I’m sure we’ll do something weird. President Laporta showed me what the noise of 90,000 fans in the stadium would be like and it was amazing. I’m sure the creativity that exists in work teams will fly this project.

Another option is to change the Spotify logo on the t-shirt to promote artists or albums, what idea do you have?

One of the keys to this agreement isn’t just putting the Spotify logo on the shirt. One of the priorities is to create creative things in all the spaces at Espai Barça and also on the shirt. We want it to be a platform to promote artists. We haven’t talked about whether it’s just fights or training jerseys.