Xavier Asensi: "Having Messi is an Inter Miami goal"

Xavier Asensi is the CBO (Chief Business Officer) of Inter-Miami, Barcelona’s first rival on the US tour. That means he’s almost an executive president, the highest responsible for all non-sports parts. Asensi he spent ten years in Barcelona, ​​where he was director of the commercial area after becoming director of the Hong Kong office. From that office, he refused to sign invoices for services he deemed vague and unreasonable from I3 Ventures. That situation marked his last years in Barcelona and continues to trouble him: on the 20th he will testify electronically at the trial in ‘Barçagate’ to repeat what he had already explained to Mossos during his time in an affidavit. The day before, his Inter will compete Barcelonaclub of which he is an executive and of which he is a member, at Drive Pink Stadium

Drive Pink Stadium, a strange name

It has a story. Drive Pink is an initiative of the company Autonation, which sponsored the stadium, to raise awareness on the fight against breast cancer. They are car sellers and you can ask to have a pink license plate in exchange for donations to collaborate on breast cancer treatments. This is one of the things I am proud of.

In accordance with the old agreement with Barça-Unicef

Yes, you’ll find a parallel, even if in that case it’s about offering assets to finance Unicef ​​projects. In this case, it is to use the popularity of soccer and the MLS to help raise awareness against this disease.

How much projection does ‘soccer’ have today in the US?

The sports industry in the United States is one of the most relevant. Within that industry, soccer is growing, but it’s true that it starts at very low compared to other sports. The visible face of that growth has been MLS and the World Cup in four years. The truth is that football is growing and it is the most global sport that exists, but it is a slow growth, not exponential. Love cannot be forced. For example, we are a young club and people have to do it themselves, connecting.

Is making a profit for FC Barcelona much different than making it for Inter Miami?

many. There are three ways to enter: TV rights, all formed on game days and commercial agreements. Here, as a closed league, MLS owns and manages the TV rights and for the clubs they are relatively low; the revenue for ‘match day’ depends on the stadium; and commercial agreements are largely dependent on the League, as is the case with the Champions League, which manages all advertising for the competition. Therefore, our growth capacity, above all, was in our stadium, with 20,000 spectators, on the day of the match.

How’s boss Beckham?

Amazing for who he is, his participation in the club and the impact of everything he does. Beyond the fact that he prefers that he play for Barça and not for Real Madrid, even though his team is Manchester United, he and Jorge Mas and the Mas family are heavily involved.

Is having figures like Messi at Inter Miami, a possibility discussed, a goal?

Yes, there are nuances. Leo Messi cannot be compared to other football players, separately. With that said, what we’re looking for is to be the soccer reference in the United States and even that, what matters is the players and the spectacle that you can provide. To provide this, you need the best players and having them is a real goal of our club. Leo Messi, on the other hand, was there after the others.

Is it realistic to think that Messi could play for Inter Miami?

Depends on him and his will. We want to have the best players in the world and Messi I think is the best in history. From here, it’s up to you. We want to be a soccer reference in the USA, this is one of the property’s goals.

Is the arrival of Barcelona special for you?

From an emotional point of view it is wonderful and professionally it is exceptional. Barça, if not the biggest, is certainly one of the three biggest clubs in the world and the clubs are the ones that capitalize on the passion for football. I have no known FIFA or UEFA fans. In the national football team, everyone is in favor of his country, but clubs have no boundaries, they reach everywhere. And at the club level, Barça are one of the biggest, numbers on hand. Emotionally, for me he is the greatest. Having him here, for the people of Miami, is amazing.

Did this game give you a lot of work?

Pleasure scabies is not itchy.

Despite the fact that he insists that Barça is one of the biggest clubs, so far as a goal it does not seem so. How do you see the club situation as a member?

messy. At the athletic level, I have nothing to talk about and I think the team is, along with Xavi, in the best possible hands as a coach. We have to be patient, which is something we don’t have, but at the athletic level, I have no doubt that with Xavi we couldn’t be in better hands. At the economic and management level, the club was in a very delicate situation, to the point that it decided to sell the club’s assets. Hopefully the ship will be stabilized from good results in the field sooner rather than later.

What is the purpose of Inter?

There are two. Sportingly, that team is competing and in the long run the titles will come. And at the brand level, the goal is to be the benchmark for soccer in the US.

Is your ten years of experience in Barcelona important in achieving those goals?

Yes, all experience helps in a League like MLS, where a lot of things start at the beginning

How did Barcelona reach the current situation, entering close to 1,000 million?

If we examine the revenue channels, the TV rights remain the same, beyond the fact that you have now sold a share. Second, everything related to the day of the match has fallen sharply and here Covid and inflation, which stops the subscriber paying for their seat, are at play: that seat is put on the market, but if there is no tourism is not purchased or less. Without Messi, the price might not be too high. Third, the section on trade agreements has also been reduced, partly as a result of Covid but also as a result of decisions made or the commercial approach. In my time the strategy was to maximize assets; now I don’t know, because I’m not here, but if you look at the numbers, the volume of business goes down. If things are done now, maybe in 2024 you’ll be back to 900 million, but it’s not action-reaction, you need a few years.

Are you in favor of Messi’s continuation?

Depending on the condition. From an emotional and culé perspective, one hundred and ten thousand percent is yes, but it depends on the conditions and situation. Things are not black or white. At PSG, Messi has seen the number of social networks increase, merchandising has grown significantly …

What are your best memories of your time in Barcelona?

Mourinho’s 5-0 win against Madrid, with a yellow collar and Unicef ​​on his shirt, and Xavi scored the first goal. And acting as ‘speaker’ at Camp Nou, along with the great Manel Vich, in English for Chelsea fans, was unforgettable, even though they eliminated us in the Champions League in the semi-finals. Despite that result, there was a great sense of pride from the fans, as well as in Pep’s last Champions League match with Barça.