Roger Hampel
Carlota Aparici, Director of International Expansion at UD Las Palmas
In this interview, Roger Hampel from the Football Business Journal speaks with Carlota Aparici, Director of International Expansion at UD Las Palmas, about the club’s innovative approach to integrating tourism with football. The conversation explores how UD Las Palmas leverages its partnership with Turismo Gran Canaria to promote both the club and the island internationally, attracting tourists to their matches and boosting local and international fan engagement. This conversation took place during the World Football Summit 2024, where Carlota was a speaker on two panels.
Roger Hampel (Football Business Journal): Turismo Gran Canaria is the main sponsor of UD Las Palmas. How do you leverage the international presence of your beautiful islands, partnering with the local tourist authority?
Carlota Aparici (UD Las Palmas): We work closely with the public institution. Our goal, as UD Las Palmas, is to represent the city and the island in the best possible way, and Turismo Gran Canaria helps make this easier. They have a strategic plan for tourism, with offices in countries like Germany, the UK, and others. This collaboration allows us to build an effective strategy aimed at tourists, promoting both UD Las Palmas and Gran Canaria. Essentially, when people think of Gran Canaria, we want them to also think of UD Las Palmas.
This partnership has been going for three years now, and I believe it will continue for many more.
Photo Credit: UD Las Palmas
Roger Hampel (Football Business Journal): Do you see tangible results from this partnership?
Carlota Aparici (UD Las Palmas): Yes, definitely. For instance, about 20% of the people attending our games are tourists, many of whom come to the stadium during their holidays as a direct result of our collaboration with Turismo Gran Canaria. Beyond match attendance, we’ve seen tangible results in other areas as well. For example, jersey and merchandise sales have increased significantly since 2022, as well as social media followers. Factors like our sporting success in La Liga, attractive jersey designs that resonate with Canarian identity, and international expansion have helped us surpass €5 million in merchandise sales last year.
Moreover, the continued rise in tourism has also contributed to our success. In July 2024 alone, the Canary Islands received over 1.39 million tourists, a 5.58% increase from the previous year. This directly impacts us because the more tourists visit the island, the higher the likelihood they will attend our games and purchase club merchandise or services, further boosting our local and international presence.
Some tourists, particularly those holidaying in the south of Gran Canaria, decide to come to watch our games. Turismo Gran Canaria works with tour operators, who contact us for tickets and experiences for these visitors.
Roger: That's interesting. So, when you target tourists, do you find that they go back to their home countries and potentially become UD Las Palmas fans?
Carlota: Yes, it’s part of our internationalization strategy. Many tourists, especially Germans, like to buy souvenirs like our team’s shirts. For them, it’s not just a football shirt but a special gift, something that reminds them of both their holiday and the team. It’s like having two things in one—a souvenir from their holiday and a football team they support.
Photo Credit: UD Las Palmas
Roger: That’s a great approach, particularly in marketing. Do you see this internationalization strategy leading to for example, the creation of fan clubs abroad?
Carlota: The UK is especially important for us because many people there already know Gran Canaria. We now have a lot of fans in the UK, and we’ve found that UD Las Palmas is becoming like a "second team" for many people.
Roger: You mentioned that the UK is a target market. I also know that your nickname is "Los Canaries" and that you have a partnership with Norwich City, which shares the same nickname. Can you explain more about that partnership and others like it? I think it’s unique in football.
Carlota: Yes, we were thinking about how to expand UD Las Palmas into other markets. Many clubs focus on things like academies, merchandise, and franchises. But we thought, "Why not share our identity with another club?" This led us to create a "Canaries family" strategy. Clubs like FC Nantes and Norwich City share similar identities with us—they have canaries as mascots, similar colors, and shared values.
Turismo Gran Canaria also sponsors Norwich, and our shirts are sold in their shops. It's about building a "family" of canaries, uniting teams with similar identities.
Photo Credit: UD Las Palmas
Carlota: In the United States, we have a special partnership with San Antonio FC, a USL team. San Antonio has historical ties to the Canary Islands, and the club’s owners, the Spurs, are one of the biggest NBA teams. So, San Antonio is like our extended family.
Photo Credit: UD Las Palmas
Roger: What projects do you work on with these partner clubs?
Carlota: We have several projects. For instance, we run a kids’ camp in San Antonio, which connects UD Las Palmas to the local community. Many of the children have family ties to the Canary Islands.
In San Antonio, the Canary Islands are an important part of their history. We also collaborate on friendly matches, digital activations, and shirt sales. It’s all about sharing our passion and creating lasting relationships.
Roger: It seems like your internationalization strategy is comprehensive. What other international projects are you working on?
Carlota: We are a host city for the 2030 FIFA World Cup at the Gran Canaria Stadium, which is a huge opportunity for both the club and the island. Our goal is to grow our international presence and showcase our stadium and island to the world.
Photo Credit: UD Las Palmas
Carlota: We are also focusing on markets like Mexico, Canada, and the USA. We’re working with La Liga on content creation and daily activations in these countries. This has led to excellent results.
Our target markets include the UK, Germany, Europe in general, and Latin America, but we’re currently prioritizing Mexico and the USA. We are considering opening a new academy for kids in the future, but we want to carefully study the markets before making any decisions.
Roger: When you play big teams like Barcelona or Real Madrid, do you find that tourists combine their holidays with attending the matches?
Carlota: Yes, absolutely. Of course, Real Madrid and Barcelona games are different from a match against other teams, but we want to show that it’s worthwhile to visit the stadium regardless of the opponent. We’re also working on creating packages for tourists, particularly from the USA, although the lack of direct flights from the USA to Gran Canaria presents a challenge. We’re hoping for direct flights from cities like Miami in the future.
UD Las Palmas vs. Real Madrid Photo Credit: UD Las Palmas
Roger: Do you think having direct flights could elevate your global presence?
Carlota: I think so. We are already looking into partnerships with airlines like Iberia and Air Europa, although we currently only have Binter, a local airline, for inter-island flights.
Roger: Let’s talk about youth development. How is UD Las Palmas focusing on its academy?
Carlota: Our academy is one of the best. Many Canarian players are playing abroad in countries like Poland, Germany, and Italy. We have a strong track record of developing great footballers.
Roger: That’s true. Do you also collaborate with other industries, like tourism or hospitality?
Carlota: We have strong sponsorships with hotels and sometimes collaborate on joint activations. Recently, we started a new business venture—a beer called "Pio Pio" that is owned by UD Las Palmas. It’s not co-branded with anyone else, and it’s made using water from the La Palma volcano. You can find it in the stadium and other local spots. The beer has our logo on it. It’s great branding because people can enjoy the beer, then come to the stadium to experience more. We also have our own wine.
Photo Credit: UD Las Palmas
Roger: The Canary Islands archipelago includes many islands like Tenerife, Gran Canaria, and Lanzarote. Do you also target fans from other local islands or have shops on these islands?
Carlota: We have only one official shop, and it’s located in Gran Canaria. Yes, we have targeted with the different islands. However, in Tenerife it’s challenging because people there tend to support CD Tenerife.
Comments