FC Barcelona & Vissel Kobe - a unique relationship
Across the world of football, multiple partnerships exist. Whether it be Manchester City and New York City, Watford and Udinese or FC Barcelona and Vissel Kobe.
The Pozzo Family Example
Usually, these collaborations only occur when owners possess multiple clubs. A great example of this is the relationship between Watford and Udinese, due to the ownership of The Pozzo Family.
It all started when Giampaolo Pozzo purchased Serie A club Udinese, in 1986. Since then however, he and his family have constructed a football empire, purchasing La Liga outfit; Granada CF (whom he sold in 2016), after pursuing a new footballing venture at Watford FC, in 2012.
As soon as Pozzo bought The Hornets, he sent players from Udinese and Granada CF to help bolster the squad - one of the many beauties of owning multiple clubs.
Barca x Vissel
The type of relationship between FC Barcelona and Vissel Kobe, however, is different.
In November 2016, Barcelona announced that Rakuten would replace Qatar Airways in becoming their main global sponsor. However, the deal had much more to it than just advertising Rakuten on the front of the Catalan clubs shirt.
In an article posted on Barcelona’s website as of July 2019, the club expressed the desire to “take advantage of synergies to share knowledge both on a technical level, such as staff training and work systems, and in other areas of their clubs, such as marketing and commercial aspects.” Needless to say, Rakuten-owned Vissel Kobe also shared this desire.
As a result of this agreement, the clubs obtained the chance to send young players from one to the other, in what they said was “to test their level in other environments and to give them the opportunity to develop their expertise.”
Barcelona Legend, Andres Iniesta plying his trade for Japanese side Vissel Kobe
Next stop; Japan
When Barcelona legend Andrés Iniesta joined Vissel Kobe in July 2018, the relationship between the clubs was well and truly underway - with David Villa joining the Japanese side just 6 months later. The duo kickstarted what would turn out to be a number of quality acquisitions - with former Barcelona players plying their trade in the J1 League.
Vissel Kobe now occupy 4 former Barcelona players in their squad; Andrés Iniesta, David Villa, Sergi Samper and Thomas Vermaelen. These high profile players have also attracted the likes of Germany legend, Lukas Podolski.
However, at the time of writing this - David Villa has announced his retirement, whilst Lukas Podolski is set to join Turkish-outfit Antalyaspor.
It’s fair to say, the relationship between FC Barcelona and Vissel Kobe is a unique one. With both clubs being connected through a sponsor, that has enabled a collaboration that could result in some sought after Japanese prospects emerging from Vissel Kobe - thanks to the Catalan clubs input.
It’s certainly something to keep an eye on in years to come.