We’re expanding beyond Berlin and taking the first steps into the international world! What does that mean exactly?
💜 Information anytime, anywhere
From now on, our social media channels and website will be available in both German and English: fcviktoria.com/en
🌍 Worldwide shipping
Our merch can now not only be worn on vacation but also ordered! Our shop now offers international shipping: shop.fcviktoria.com
✌️Globally connected
We are part of international conferences and panels! Recently, our co-founder Ariane Hingst joined Julie Uhrman, co-founder of Angel City FC, on a panel at the Thinking Football Summit to talk about our vision and journey.
🚀 The first steps towards internationalisation!
An interview between Sonja Koppitz and Katharina Kurz.
At BRLO, you’ve already taken the step towards internationalization. What can FC Viktoria Berlin learn from BRLO?
K | At BRLO, we’re now active in several countries and stand out with a healthy dose of Berlin lifestyle and our motto “Challenging Stereotypes.” We reimagine the quintessential German product – beer – and create a big storytelling universe around it. This could also work well for FC Viktoria: Berlin, diversity, doing things differently!
And what’s currently happening at FC Viktoria Berlin in terms of internationalization? What are your plans?
K | We want to make the brand we've built so far known beyond Germany’s borders. That was always the goal, and I believe that’s exactly what’s needed in women’s football right now. We need a network of great clubs that are truly forward-thinking. Even though we’re still in the regional league, I believe it's important to become more attractive to investors and push this agenda forward in various countries. Plus, we’re in a city like Berlin, which is incredibly international. So, communicating only in German is no longer up-to-date. That’s why we now communicate bilingually on our social media channels and website, and we’re also selling our merchandise internationally. Additionally, we want to strengthen our networking at global sports conferences.
I’d like to follow up because you used the term “brand.” FC Viktoria Berlin is a brand. Why is it important to become internationally known?
K | We like to think big and a few steps ahead. You can see in men’s football how important it is for many clubs to be known beyond their borders – not just the clubs but the leagues as well. Our goal isn’t to copy everything that happens in men’s football. But I think we need to think bigger and broader, especially in women’s football, which is already more developed in some countries like the USA or the UK. We need to drive growth and not just work within small communities but gain international recognition through a strong network and smart brand-building.
What can we learn from other clubs?
K | When you look at what’s happening globally in women’s football, there are now investment conglomerates like Mercury 13, which invest in various clubs across different countries and create synergies by, for example, exchanging players. This could be an approach to forming alliances with other clubs and learning from each other. Although we’re still in the regional league, we see that women’s football in Germany, which is still under the DFB, isn’t as forward-thinking as it is in other countries. That’s why it’s important for us to start thinking internationally early on.
When we talk about internationalization, what’s your ideal scenario regarding foreign investments or collaborations with international clubs? So, really looking into the future.
K | You should also ask my co-founder, Felicia Mutterer, as she likely has deeper insights. But our ideal scenario on the relationship level would be to have direct contact with clubs like Angel City, exchange regularly, share best practices, and learn from one another. And beyond that, I’d love to see much more capital flowing into women’s football because it’s always the chicken-and-egg problem: you don’t get the attention by itself. Money needs to flow, and everything needs to become more professional. And since this money isn’t yet as readily available in Germany, and while some people are slowly recognizing the potential, it’s slow. I think other investors are ahead and see women’s football as a growth case.That’s why the international network is currently much more attractive. And again, our goal isn’t to commercialize everything the way it is in men’s football – but there’s still a huge gap between the two.
Still, as a businesswoman, let me ask: What can sport learn from the business world? What strategies or tricks can a sports club adopt from the business world?
K | I mean, it’s not like sport hasn’t already integrated into the business world or vice versa. But women’s sports haven’t reached that point as much. I think brand building is absolutely something women’s sports can learn from. Women’s football in Germany is still very regional and almost outdated in its communication. You can learn a lot from other clubs and businesses to make the whole thing more lifestyle-oriented. Awareness is super important, and we want to reach people not only in Berlin but internationally. A huge success factor is definitely how many fans we can get into the stadium. That’s super important, and we’ll be working hard on that in the future. There are so many people who identify with our mission at FC Viktoria Berlin, even beyond the sporting aspect. We’d love to reach far more people outside the LinkedIn bubble, followers on social media, where the content is interesting not just for Berliners but naturally prepared in both English and German.
One last question: With all this focus on internationalization, how do you ensure you don’t lose sight of the sporting and club-side priorities?
K | It all has to happen in parallel. Sometimes our media response was too big, but the challenge is to turn people into fans. We’re in Berlin, where there are many alternatives on the weekend. How do we get people to come to us? How do we create a stadium experience that convinces them to come back a second time? It doesn’t help if we have 100,000 LinkedIn followers, but no one is in the stadium. We have to adjust many levers and address them in parallel. As I said, the goal has always been to create a flagship project that benefits not only us but many others. And I believe this message definitely deserves to be spread not just in German and not just locally.
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