What is Football Black Book?

At a Glance

Connecting Football Business

Football is a relationship driven business, but access alone is not enough. Turning an introduction into a successful partnership requires market knowledge, commercial judgement and an understanding of how the game operates. Football Black Book was created to bring those elements together.

Football Black Book works across the global football industry, connecting clubs, leagues, federations, brands, investors and agencies through partnerships designed to deliver measurable value. Its work spans commercial partnerships, sponsorship, strategic consulting, market intelligence, event delivery and network access, alongside media and content production through Football Business Television.

Football Black Book works across the global football industry, connecting clubs, leagues, federations, brands, investors and agencies through partnerships designed to deliver measurable value.

Led by Founder and CEO Patrick “Mac” McCreanor, former CEO of Soccerex, the business draws on more than 50 years of combined industry experience. The team has worked across football’s commercial and operational landscape, helping organisations identify opportunities, reach the right decision makers and turn conversations into lasting relationships.

The Business End

That same philosophy sits behind The Business End, Football Black Book’s series of focused gatherings for the people responsible for specific areas of the game. Rather than attempting to cover every corner of football business at once, each event centres on a particular topic in football. The aim is to give delegates relevant discussion, useful connections and ideas they can take back into their organisations.

The Business End: Let’s Get Engaged

The Business End: Let’s Get Engaged will take place at The Den, home of Millwall Football Club, on 16 September 2026. The sold out event is expected to welcome around 250 attendees from clubs, leagues, federations, brands, agencies and specialist businesses for a full day focused on the relationship between football organisations and their supporters.

Across a programme of panels, case studies and networking sessions, the event will explore how organisations can attract, understand, grow and retain their audiences. Discussions will cover the commercial fan ecosystem, matchday experience, first party insight and personalisation, international audience growth, content and community, the creator economy, and fan loyalty and retention.

Ahead of the event, Football Black Book spoke with McCreanor about the thinking behind The Business End, why fan engagement was chosen as a central theme and what he wants delegates to take away from the day.

Key Takeaways

• Football Black Book works across commercial partnerships, sponsorship, strategic consulting, market intelligence, events, network access, media and content production.
• The Business End is designed as a series of focused gatherings centred on specific areas and professional communities within football.
• Let’s Get Engaged focuses on the relationship between football organisations and their supporters, including data, content, matchday experience and fan loyalty.

Our Exclusive Interview with Patrick “Mac” McCreanor

What led to the creation of Football Black Book?

Football is full of opportunity, but it can also be a difficult industry to navigate. We saw a need for a business that could combine strong relationships with genuine commercial understanding and hands on delivery. Our network is important, but the real value comes from knowing how to use it responsibly, how to bring the right people together and how to create an outcome that works for everyone involved. Football Black Book was built around that idea. We help clients understand the landscape, identify the right opportunities and then support them through the process of turning those opportunities into results.

Our network is important, but the real value comes from knowing how to use it responsibly, how to bring the right people together and how to create an outcome that works for everyone involved.

How does The Business End fit into the wider Football Black Book business?

Events are a natural extension of what we do. Much of our work is about bringing relevant people into the same conversation, but we wanted to create a format that went deeper than a broad industry conference. The Business End focuses on the people dealing with the same challenges every day. That makes the content more relevant, the audience more considered and the conversations more useful. It also allows us to combine our consultancy and network in one place, while giving clubs, brands and partners a setting in which meaningful relationships can develop naturally.

Why did you choose fan engagement as the focus for this event?

Fan engagement touches almost every part of a football organisation. It affects ticketing, commercial partnerships, content, data, matchday experience, community work and long term loyalty. At the same time, supporter expectations are changing quickly. Clubs are competing not only with one another, but with every other form of entertainment for attention and time. We wanted to create a day that looks at fan engagement as a complete ecosystem rather than a collection of separate activities. The strongest organisations understand that supporter connection has to be consistent across every touchpoint.

The strongest organisations understand that supporter connection has to be consistent across every touchpoint.

What makes Let’s Get Engaged different from a larger football business conference?

The focus is what makes it different. We have built the event around a specific professional community and a defined set of challenges. That means delegates should be able to look around the room and see people who understand their work, face similar pressures and can contribute something useful to the discussion. We have also been deliberate about creating time for conversation. Panels matter, but often the most valuable exchange happens afterwards, when someone asks a more detailed question or continues a discussion over lunch. The format is designed to make those moments easier.

What are the biggest questions you want the event to address?

One of the biggest questions is how engagement becomes something measurable without losing the human connection that makes football distinctive. Data and personalisation can help organisations understand supporters more clearly, but those tools must improve the relationship rather than make it feel transactional. We also want to explore how clubs can strengthen the matchday experience, build loyalty beyond results on the pitch, communicate authentically across different markets and work effectively with creators and partners. There is no single answer, which is why it is important to bring together people with different perspectives and experiences.

How important is the mix of people in the room?

It is fundamental. A strong event is not only about the names on stage. The audience shapes the quality of the entire day. We wanted senior decision makers from rights holders alongside brands, agencies, media leaders and businesses that support football organisations. Each group sees the fan relationship from a different angle. When that mix is carefully curated, people can challenge assumptions, share practical experience and discover opportunities that would not emerge within their usual circles. Selling out the event shows there is a real appetite for that kind of focused exchange.

Why was The Den the right venue?

We want The Business End events to take place where football actually lives. The Den has history, identity and a strong sense of place, which makes it an appropriate setting for a conversation about supporter connection. The venue should add context to the event rather than simply provide a room. Being inside a football stadium keeps the discussion grounded in the environments where clubs welcome supporters, build traditions and create the experiences that people remember.

What do you want delegates to take away from the day?

I want people to leave with at least one idea they can apply, one assumption they have reconsidered and several relationships they will continue after the event. We are not interested in creating a day where people listen to a series of presentations and then move on. The value should continue through follow up conversations, partnerships and changes inside the organisations represented. If delegates leave with a clearer understanding of their supporters and a stronger network around them, the event will have achieved what we set out to do.

What is your wider vision for The Business End series?

The ambition is to build a trusted series of specialist events for the departments and professionals who keep football moving. Different areas of the game have their own priorities, pressures and communities, and they deserve forums designed specifically for them. We will keep the format focused, practical and relationship led. Growth matters, but relevance matters more. We want each event to be recognised as a place where the right people discuss the right subjects and leave with genuine value.

FAQ

What is Football Black Book?

Football Black Book works across the global football industry, connecting clubs, leagues, federations, brands, investors and agencies through partnerships designed to deliver measurable value.

What does Football Black Book offer?

Its work spans commercial partnerships, sponsorship, strategic consulting, market intelligence, event delivery and network access, alongside media and content production through Football Business Television.

What is The Business End: Let’s Get Engaged?

The Business End: Let’s Get Engaged will take place at The Den, home of Millwall Football Club, on 16 September 2026. The sold out event is expected to welcome around 250 attendees from clubs, leagues, federations, brands, agencies and specialist businesses for a full day focused on the relationship between football organisations and their supporters.