Bayern Munich sides with Adobe to enhance global fan experience

Bayern Munich is following Real Madrid in bidding to connect better with its fans globally using Adobe’s Experience Cloud software.

FC Bayern, which dominates German football, is attracting fans globally, in the same way as the Spanish giants Real and Barcelona, and English Premiership sides with long-established global brands such as Manchester United, Liverpool, and Chelsea. Manchester City comes just after United in Statista’s list of the most valuable football brands, just ahead of FC Bayern München.

Bayern has been the Bundesliga champions for 10 years in a row, with the better-supported Borussia Dortmund – in terms of fans in the stadium – the last other team to come top.

Bayern hopes Adobe’s technology will provide it with the ability to better understand its fans, in Germany and beyond, to create more engaging and individualised football experiences.

By doing so, the club hopes it has found a “new way to attract and retain fans all around the world to stop their supporters overseas being tempted into switching allegiances”. Such international fans are likely to be more fickle than the Ultras of the Sudkurve of the Allianz Arena.

The club will use Adobe Experience Cloud, the supplier’s customer relationship management (CRM) platform, which includes a customer data platform, to create fan profiles. The idea is to enhance the fans matchday experience by giving real-time notifications about merch discounts, video content and last-minute ticket availability.

As an example, when a goal is scored, fans will receive content on their preferred channel, as well as post-match video commentary and highlights.

Oliver Kahn, CEO of FC Bayern, and a former goalkeeper for the side, said in a joint statement with Adobe: “Today’s FC Bayern fan is digitally savvy and craves new ways to get closer to our club and players, which is why we aim to create sustainable and lasting interactions that bring matchday excitement to our millions of passionate fans across the world.

“We’re investing in a long-term digital strategy with Adobe’s breadth of enterprise applications at the core of our technology, to deepen how our fans engage with the club and to inspire the next generation of fans for years to come.”

The club is also using Adobe Document Cloud, including Adobe Acrobat Sign, to “digitise collaboration with fans, employees and partners”, it said, adding that membership applications will also be faster for fans.

For Adobe, Anil Chakravarthy, president of Digital Experience Business at the supplier, said: “FC Bayern has millions of fans around the world, and they are at the forefront of revolutionising fan experiences.

“With this partnership, FC Bayern will create more personalised experiences to enable fans to celebrate the passion and heart of the club wherever they may be.”