Jon Boafo

20/09/2026

Africa is full of talent. But talent without the right environment is just wasted potential.

The real gap is not ability. It is what surrounds it.

Courts. Pitches. Academies. Coaches. Competitions. Infrastructure. Pathways.

If we want more African athletes reaching the highest levels, identifying talent is not enough.

We have to build the conditions for it to develop, compete and succeed.

One court at a time.

The question is no longer whether Africa has the talent. It is whether we are willing to build what that talent needs to become world-class.

18/09/2026

🚨 Kylian Mbappé has left Nike after many years but his next move is more than a sponsorship deal.

He has joined Swiss brand On as it prepares to enter football, with its first boots planned for 2027.

The interesting part? Mbappé becomes a shareholder and will help develop On’s football products.

On generated CHF3bn+ in sales in 2025, growing 30% in a year. It has already disrupted running and expanded into tennis with Roger Federer.

Now it wants football.

This is how challenger brands use elite athletes: not just as ambassadors, but as partners in building new categories.

Mbappé isn't just wearing the brand. He's helping build it.

16/09/2026

In 2013, Michael Essien showed the power of a footballer's network 🇬🇭 ⚽️

He brought together a remarkable group of stars for the Game of Hope at the Accra Sports Stadium, with Essien's Africa XI facing Michael Ballack's World XI.

Okocha, Adebayor, Malouda, Cissé, Carvalho, Marcelo, the Ayew brothers and more were involved.

But it wasn't just about football.

The event combined sport, entertainment and philanthropy, raising funds for charitable projects while bringing global football stars to Ghana 🌍

16/09/2026

📺 We spend 90 minutes watching footballers during the weekend.

Everton is asking a different question:

What if you could experience what happens for the other six days of the week?

The club is reportedly offering a one-week experience for £25,000 that puts a fan inside the life of a Premier League player.

And from a sports-business perspective, this is fascinating.

The product isn't simply a ticket.

The reported package gives the customer access to parts of the footballer experience we normally never see:

🏨 Stay at the team hotel
🍽️ Eat alongside the players
✈️ Travel with the squad
⚽ Train with the team
🧠 Experience meetings and team talks
🔥 Warm up on the touchline
🪑 Sit on the bench as an honorary member
👕 Receive personalised official kit

You're not buying a seat.

You're buying access to the lifestyle.

This is where sports businesses can become really interesting.

Football clubs traditionally monetise what fans can see:

Tickets.
Shirts.
Hospitality.
Food.
Broadcast rights.

But there is another asset sitting underneath all of that:

Access.

Fans don't just want to watch footballers. Many want to understand what it feels like to BE one.

Think about what television doesn't show.

The hotel routine.

The meals.

The journey to matches.

The preparation.

The meetings.

The recovery.

The conversations.

The hours of work before a player ever walks onto the pitch.

Everton is effectively turning that “unseen” part of football into a premium experience.

And this is important for clubs:

You don't always need to create a completely new asset.

Sometimes you can package access to something you already have in a completely different way.

The players already travel.

They already train.

They already stay in hotels.

The commercial opportunity comes from deciding how much of that world can be opened up without compromising the team's competitive environment.

It also changes the meaning of “fan experience.”

The traditional model is…

Watch the players.

The emerging model is:

Get closer to the players.

Everton already markets experiences that take supporters beyond the traditional matchday, including premium offerings built around access to areas associated with the players' environment.

This takes that idea much further.

There is also a powerful storytelling opportunity here.

Imagine the content generated from one person's week:

Day 1 - arrive at the training camp.
Day 2 - training.
Day 3 - team meetings.
Day 4 - travel.
Day 5 - matchday preparation.
Day 6 - matchday.
Day 7 - recovery.

Suddenly, the customer isn't just consuming football.

They're living a football story.

The bigger question is whether this is scalable.

£25,000 makes it an ultra-premium product rather than something designed for mass participation.

But the underlying idea can be replicated at different price points:

Training-ground tours.

Player-meal experiences.

Matchday access.

Travel experiences.

Behind-the-scenes content.

Even digital versions of the same journey.

The football industry has spent decades selling the spectacle.

The next opportunity may be selling proximity to the spectacle.

Because what happens on the pitch is only a small part of a footballer's working week.

Everton is essentially putting a price on the parts supporters normally never get to see.

So here's the question:

If you had £25,000 to spend on an experience, would you pay it to live like a Premier League player for a week?

Not just watch the match.

15/09/2026

A football shirt can carry much more than a brand logo.

LaLiga clubs have been wearing shirts reading “Todos somos caballas” which means “We are all Caballas” in solidarity with the people of Ceuta following a major migration crisis at the Spanish enclave’s border with Morocco.

But the message has become sensitive because Morocco disputes Spain’s sovereignty over Ceuta. Moroccan international Ez Abde faced backlash after wearing the shirt, before clarifying that his gesture was social, not political.

Then, before Elche vs Real Madrid, Mbappé, Vinícius and Konaté wore the shirts in a way that obscured the message, with Mbappé and Vinícius removing theirs before kickoff.

15/09/2026

🎓 Football is a short career. Education can build what comes after it.

Congratulations to 🇳🇬 Taiwo Awoniyi, who has graduated from the PFA Business School with a Diploma in Global Football Sport Directorship.

Beyond the qualification, this is about preparing for life beyond playing which is understanding the business, leadership and decision-making that shape football.

More players should consider investing in education while they play. Your football career may have a timeline. Your knowledge doesn’t.

15/09/2026

🏟️ UEFA announce that Munich Football Arena and Camp Nou will host the Champions League final in 2028 and 2029 respectively.

Do you remember the last time the was played at each of these two venues?

14/09/2026

The most valuable minutes in elite football are no longer the 90 on the pitch. 👇🏾

Oura has signed England captain Harry Kane and vice-captain Declan Rice as global ambassadors, both using the Ring 5 to track sleep, stress and readiness through the season. It lands on top of Team USA and LA28, Team Finland, all 27 US Soccer national teams, a five year USTA deal, and the LA Dodgers. That is not scattered athlete marketing. It is a wearables company buying the performance layer of sport, federation by federation, while the category is still cheap.

Recovery data is now part of the performance kit. Most African clubs are sitting on the same asset with none of the infrastructure to measure it. Who builds it first?

11/09/2026

🚨 What is a ‘joker’ transfer in Ligue 1? 🇫🇷

It’s a rule that allows a French club to make an additional signing outside the transfer window.

The player must already be playing in France and hold an FFF licence for the current season. The joker can be used once.

There’s a recent example: Lyon used the rule in October 2025 to sign 🇳🇱 Hans Hateboer on loan from Rennes.

Now, OGC Nice could use the same mechanism to sign 🇬🇭 Alidu Seidu from Rennes.

Seidu was close to leaving this summer, but an agreement couldn’t be reached.

The transfer window may be closed, but in France, the door isn’t completely shut. 👀

OGC Nice are considering a move for 🇬🇭 Alidu Seidu.

Rules in France would permit the Rennes defender to move after the transfer deadline as a ‘joker’.

The 26yo was close to leaving in the summer window, but Strasbourg and Marseille backed off due to the structure of the deal demanded by Rennes.