ISL Agency Instagram Tours Friendlies Recap 01
ISL Agency Instagram Tours Friendlies Recap 03
ISL_Agency_Twitter_Brest-vs-Mallorca_Tours-Friendlies-1
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT
Location:

Europe

Year:

Preseason 2020/21
Preseason 2021/22

SHARE THIS

The Case

ISL organized preseason friendlies for top soccer clubs through challenging Covid times. 

ISL Tours&Friendlies offers management solutions for clubs to organize preseason friendly matches with suitable opponents in a safe environment for all participants. 

According to each club’s needs, these matches can be focused on the competition side, for training purposes only, or on the branding side, to increase brand awareness in different territories, for example: the Aston Villa US tour to play against Louisville that ISL set up but was postponed due to the pandemic. 

In the last two preseasons, Olympique de Marseille and Stade Rennais asked ISL to organize a friendly match with a Champions League contender. 

ISL did the job, putting the clubs in contact with SL Benfica, which matched all their requests and availability, and following up on all the logistic details, including travelling, accommodation, security and PR..

The Client

Stade Rennais FC : Owned by French billionaire Françoise Pinault, who also owns  the luxury fashion brands Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Bottega Veneta. Stade Rennais Football Club is a French professional football club. Three time winner of the French Cup, it is based in Rennes, Brittany, and commonly referred to as Stade Rennais, Rennes, or simply SRFC. They compete in Ligue 1, the top tier of French football. 

SL Benfica: Founded in 1904, Sport Lisboa e Benfica, commonly known as Benfica, is a professional football club based in Lisbon, Portugal, that competes in the Primeira Liga, the top tier of Portuguese football. Home of football legends such as Eusébio and Rui Costa, Benfica is honoured with the Portuguese Orders of Christ, of Prince Henry, and of Merit. Competitively, with 84 major trophies won Benfica is the most decorated club in Portugal. Benfica was voted 12th in FIFA Club of the Century and ranked 9th in the IFFHS Top 200 European clubs of the 20th century. In UEFA, Benfica ranks 9th in the all-time club ranking, having won both the UEFA CUP and the Champions League.  

Olympique de Marseille: Olympique de Marseille, also known as OM or simply Marseille, is a French professional men’s football club based in Marseille. Founded in 1899, OM plays in Ligue 1, the top tier of French football. Marseille has won the Champions League once, and the French Championship 11 times. Names like Fabien Barthez, former goalkeeper of the national French team and world champion, and Didier Drogba, have played for Marseille.

The Challenge

Organizing sports events has been extremely challenging over the last year and a half due to the effects and restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

In addition to the usual diligence of finding clubs that match each other’s needs for their preseason schedules, locations, budgets and competition levels, ISL had to face the uncertainty of travelling restrictions, as well as the possibility of last minute Covid infections in the teams. It was necessary to implement health safety protocols not only during the matches, but on every aspect of the clubs’ journeys, from their means of transportation to their meals, hotel accommodation, etc. 

Apart from the health safety protocols, the travelling logistics of a soccer team are much more complex than a normal travelling group, including a demanding set of specific requests such as private plane, private transportation, locker rooms equipped with certain commodities, amongst other requirements. 

ISL successfully guaranteed safe and secure environments for the events, and satisfied all the clubs’ logistic needs and requests.

The Solution

ISL activated its powerful network of sports clubs, built over the past decade with several deals, events and collaborations worldwide with top sports brands, athletes and sports institutions.

Considering the different requests, ISL matched up Marseille and Stade Rennais with SL Benfica (in different preseasons).

Furthermore, ISL assisted the clubs in both communicating and organizing the events with maximum safety for all parties.

The Results

After months of relentless work from the ISL Tours&Friendlies team, all matches were secured and played. 

The first friendly match was played in the 2020/21 pre-season at Estadio da Luz, in Lisbon, facing SL Benfica and Stade Rennais. 

The event was highly covered by the Portuguese and French media

920492_ISLYearReview9Way_121720_06

img_Benfica-vs-Rennais_01

The second friendly match was played on July 25th, 2021, between Benfica and Olympique de Marseille, at Estádio da Luz as well. It also received extensive coverage from the national sports media outlets.   

The balance of both preseasons was extremely positive with all friendlies matching the clubs’ training purposes and expectations, and receiving press coverage in the sports media outlets of each country, thus increasing the clubs’ exposure in different territories.  

There were no Covid-19 related incidents/infections in any of the matches, which confirms the success of the events and the efficiency of the health and safety measures ISL put in place.

The clubs have expressed their content and gratitude to ISL.

 

ISL Health Safety Protocols 

ISL guaranteed maximum health and physical safety for the clubs by implementing a strict protocol that included measures such as:

  • Limited stadium access for the public.
  • Private elevators and private areas for the teams at the hotels.
  • Police escorts for the teams from and to the airport, as well as from and to the stadium. 
  • Reinforcement of Covid-19 regulamentary measures: obligatory use of masks and social distancing for all the event’s attendants, including players and technical staff. 

 

Logistics and event’s management 

ISL organized all events and the correspondent trips, satisfying all the requests and needs from the 3 clubs. 

Amongst other things, ISl provided private transportation, police escort and locker room amenities.

Featured Items