Sports economist Dominik Schreyer explains what draws fans to the stadium, how Arsenal built Europe’s strongest women’s football audience, and why German clubs risk falling behind in the race for spectators.
For years, the idea of Alexia Putellas leaving Barcelona felt almost impossible to imagine. Not because football allows fairy tale endings often, and not because there was never interest elsewhere, but because the relationship between player and club eventually moved beyond the usual categories. Alexia was not simply Barcelona’s captain, best player, or most recognizable figure. She became part of the club’s identity during the exact years that identity transformed into something globally recognizable.