Why Andrés Iniesta became owner of a third-tier Danish football club

FC Helsingør was relegated to the third tier last season and is currently sitting in seventh place in the table. It’s believed that they’ve been talking to Iniesta, and his company Never Say Never (NSN), about a takeover throughout the year. At first sight, there’s not an immediate link between Iniesta and the Danish football club, but the club’s sporting director, Quim Ramón, was a coach at both FC Barcelona’s youth academy and Iniesta’s academy. Furthermore, the club is currently also managed by the Spanish head coach Pep Alomar, who also worked at FC Barcelona in various roles between 1998 and 2002. 

Why Helsingør?

From a business perspective, the Danish football league is popular among foreign ownership groups. Firstly, Danish football clubs are primarily used as a ‘’springboard’’ for young players to develop before they are sold with profit to Europe’s top leagues. This makes it a highly profitable league. On top of that, it’s easy for foreign footballers to get a residence and work permit in Denmark, no matter where they come from in the world. 

In Denmark, the wages of footballers are relatively lower as well, especially for foreign players from for example Africa and South America. In the Netherlands, for example, there are stricter rules for footballers from outside the European Union to have a higher minimum wage, which makes it more difficult for Dutch football clubs to acquire foreign talents and be able to pay them. According to NSN’s website, Iniesta’s company aims to ‘’consolidate its position and give the opportunity to worldwide talents to come and play in Europe’’. 

Potential

In an interview with the local media outlet Helsingør Dagblad, Iniesta spoke about the potential he sees at FC Helsingør. ‘’“It’s an incredibly exciting club with really good facilities, a lot of good people in and around the club and a potential in the city to become an important part of Danish football.”

‘’It’s our goal to improve the team every year and to develop players,’’ Iniesta said. ‘’We want them to become better and to make sure that the people become even prouder of the team than they already are. It’s my goal to have positive experiences here with all people. Hopefully, the people will respect us because we will respect them.’’