ABSTRACT
Taking into account the economic and social significance of football in contemporary times, this chapter focuses on three current management trends pertaining to global football organizations: the transformation of clubs into entertainment multinationals; the redefinition of these clubs as paradiplomatic actors; and their shifting identity in the context of postmodernity. This chapter uses case study as the main methodological technique in order to exemplify and analyse these global transformations. The chapter concludes that European global football clubs are competing in international markets with other conglomerates –based mainly in the media sector – in order to have new consumers for 24/7 experiences. Furthermore, these clubs have become global paradiplomatic actors due to the international reputation of football brands, not only for city marketing strategies but also for peacekeeping actions in deeply divided societies. Finally, the authors critique how local identities of these football organisations have been blurred on the global scale when clubs try to fuse their corporate global identity with their core values.
