From Indoor Soccer to the Super Bowl: Lessons in Fan Experience | Mike Harmon

You might not think American soccer has contributed anything to the world of football - but this conversation will change your mind. In Episode 106 of the Because Football Podcast, we talk with seasoned sports marketer Mike Harmon, who created the logo and branding for Columbus Crew of MLS, and whose career started in the MISL (Major Indoor Soccer League) days.In this conversation, Mike shares some great stories from the youthful days of pro soccer in the US, as well as his perspective on sports marketing, partnerships, and how to properly value fans in an era where growing disillusionment and alienation threatens the trust between clubs and their supporters.Mike worked directly with US soccer benefactor Lamar Hunt and touts a career spanning nearly every major sports league and governing body, domestic and international, from the NFL, NBA, Premier League, and more. We talk about what actually worked in early MLS (hint: 40% soccer, 60% entertainment), why the fan has to come first in everything, and his concerns about World Cup ticketing. and why he believes this summer is different from every "soccer's moment" that came before.He also talks about his new role as CMO of Fanchize, a fan economy platform which connects soccer fans with clubs and opens up a new frontier of rewards, incentives, and exclusive fan experiences.If you want to understand how American soccer got here and learn from one of the people who built it, then you’ll get a lot out of this episode.Connect with Mike here:https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-harmon-75b73b2/https://www.instagram.com/michael.harmon.9469/?hl=en#Connect with Because Football here:⁠https://www.youtube.com/@BecauseFootball_⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/becausefootball_/⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/baggaleyandrew/⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/because-football-media/⁠Need help with your content strategy and production? We can help.To get in contact with us, email becausefootballmedia [at] ⁠gmail.com⁠