Kick-start Segmentation Guide for Football Clubs
Reading time:
9 mins
With 20+ years across sports, entertainment, and tech, Malte has seen both sides of the sports tech table — as an innovation lead at Sportradar, a trusted advisor to federations, and now as founder of Value 4 Sports, a market intelligence platform designed to bring order to the chaos.
Malte understands what makes clubs stall and what helps them move forward.
In this micro-interview, he unpacks the patterns he’s observed after years of guiding decision-makers.
For anyone navigating the fragmented world of sports tech, Malte’s insights are clear, practical, and grounded in experience.
Let’s dive in!
Every product should begin with a clear purpose: solving a real problem. That’s the mindset of clever clubs — they don’t start with a product; they start with a need.
Find the problem - Solve the Problem!
If technology genuinely enhances that solution, embrace it. But if tech doesn't add value, don’t force it.
Using technology just for the sake of it leads to wasted time, effort, and money. Smart solutions are about fit, not flash.
Clubs and FAs lose valuable time and resources due to poor documentation and a lack of knowledge sharing.
Throughout the season, they gather critical insights and data — yet much of it goes undocumented and unused.
As a result, each new season feels like starting from scratch. Instead of building on existing knowledge, they repeat the same research and decision-making processes year after year. Proper documentation isn’t optional; it’s essential for sustainable growth, smarter decisions, and long-term success.
Vendors often underestimate how long it takes to make a sale — and overestimate clubs’ willingness to change existing workflows. Successful engagement requires a balanced approach: both bottom-up and top-down. That means involving end users who will work with the product daily, as well as the decision makers who approve it.
Building trust at both levels doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, persistence, and strong relationships to truly embed a solution into a club’s operations.
What resonates with me is Malte’s relentless pragmatism. Clubs often drown in tools yet lack the basics like structured documentation and clear problem definitions. His reminder that technology is about fit, not flash, is something I see mirrored in CRM and RevOps: systems only create value if they solve real problems and are embedded into daily workflows.
