The many facets of the FA

Total Brand Licensing caught up with Michael Lees, Licensing Partnerships Manager, The FA Group to go deeper into the work that the Association undertakes

Firstly, can you outline some history of the FA? And the brand ethos you work under?

The FA is the oldest football association in the world and the governing body of English football. We are responsible for promoting and developing every level of the game, from grassroots through to the professional game, and successfully generates enough revenue to support investment of over £150m into English football each year. The FA oversees England international teams across men’s, women’s, youth, disability football as well as running FA Competitions including the Emirates FA Cup and Vitality Women’s FA Cup, and the world-class facilities of Wembley Stadium and St. George’s Park, all with a purpose to Unite the Game and Inspire the Nation.

How many licenses does The FA hold to date?

We have around 35 licensees within our programme currently. These licensees cover several core categories; apparel, sports accessories, everyday accessories, commemorative, home, confectionery, digital, games/toys and publishing.

Can you tell us some current brand initiatives and licensing programmes at the FA?

We are looking at international markets more closely than we have previously, with a particular focus on the United States and Far East where we are seeing an ever-growing demand for the England brand given the success of

our Men’s and Women’s team and the popularity of the English domestic leagues

How crucial is the income generated from licensing and merchandising?

All profits generated by The FA are put back into the game to encourage participation, improve facilities, ensure safeguarding, and is invested across a whole range of initiatives. Licensing and merchandising also ensures that England fans young or old can interact with the brand when buying online or on the high street, which we think is crucial to engaging with fans and inspiring the next generation.

How do you go about tackling counterfeiting and improper use of the IP, globally?

Just like all sports properties, we face a continuous battle against fake and unofficial product. We work closely with BackFour who help protect our IP and licensees against misuse and infringements, who have helped removed close to 100,000 online listings with an estimated value of over £1.5 million since we started working together in 2016. BackFour provide product verification support and advice to customs to ensure everyone is moving in the right direction to tackle fakes in order to prevent unofficial product from entering the markets and to protect the brand and fans who purchase.

Obviously the country has recently been celebrating the Lionesses’ success! What, in terms of licensing, will you do to capitalise on this and encourage more girls and young women into football?

We are already seeing an increased number of enquiries from our licensing partners regarding the use of player imagery of our Women’s team on products. I’ve no doubt this will continue as we move into next year and another tournament year for the Women’s team. With regards to actual product categories, we are exploring new opportunities that are more suitable for girls who want to interact with the game in a different way from boys. We hope that by ensuring our licensing portfolio speaks to young girls just as it does to young boys, that we will see more parents buying our products over traditional licensed alternatives.

BOOTS AND THEIR NIBS CHRISTMAS CAMPAIGN

This is Iris have revealed a partnership with Boots and British fashion brand Their Nibs - Their Nibs first capsule collection for Boots 2022 Christmas campaign has recently been released. The online launch for this years long awaited Boots Christmas Collection is finally live! With several high profile brands featured across the many ranges released today, UK licensing Agency This is Iris were thrilled to announce that British fashion brand Their Nibs had delivered their very first capsule collection for this well known High Street store. Working closely with partners Shruti and Samuel Lamont, This is Iris was able to create a new collection that celebrated the distinctive, timeless print style of this award winning British boutique brand. From the many designs available from Their Nibs, Boots selected a stunning peacock feather print which has gone across kitchen textiles, ceramics and stationery. Created in 2003 by Fiona Bell, a former fashion buyer and head of womenswear at Laura Ashley, Their Nibs has blossomed from its early days as a boutique store in Notting Hill into an online destination for lovers of inspired prints. In 2014, Fiona met Sia Smith who came on board as designer for the brand. The brand has an engaged social media following, with it’s online and instore collections repeatedly selling out. “As a small, female led brand, we are thrilled to be have been selected and represented by Boots to launch our extended range this Autumn. We are delighted to offer the Boots customer our brand of beautiful hand painted prints on new product lines.” Commented Fiona Bell, Their Nibs “We are so pleased to see this capsule collection released and to have had the opportunity to work so closely with our fantastic partners and the team at Boots from the outset. In a time where we are all experiencing so many challenges at retail, it has been refreshing to be part of so many new and exciting opportunities with retailers direct.” added. Sarah Lawrence, This is Iris.

COSWORTH LOOKS TO GROW LICENSING

Faster Brand’s automotive client Cosworth Group Holdings, a premier brand in powertrain, battery, colling and vehicle management technology, has announced it is looking for worldwide brand licensing collaborations/ partnerships with leading manufacturing companies in a number of areas. These include computer battery storage (portable backup power products); cool technology leisure (cool boxes, bags); electric scooters and cycles; performance eyewear and accessories; high performance sports luggage and outerwear; apparel companies with a motorsports heritage; sports footwear, and jewellery. With its rich history including F1 winners Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Jackie Stewart and Nigel Mansell Cosworth Group Holdings Limited are design and building the transport systems of tomorrow and work alongside some of the top names in motorsport and luxury sports cars

EMOJI GAMING LICENSE

UNIS Technology Ltd, a leading manufacturer of coin-operated games has signed a licensing agreement with the emoji company to develop a series of arcade games for emoji® - The Iconic Brand. Under the agreement, UNIS will handle the design, manufacture and distribution of the emoji® brand games that incorporate the emoji® brand icons within key markets including EMEA, US, Canada, LATAM and APAC. “We are honoured to partner with UNIS, experts in the coin-operated gaming field, to launch a product that will give the consumer an unforgettable and fun experience. Using the emoji® brand icons is an empathetic way to connect with people,” said Marco Huesges, CEO and founder of The emoji Company. “Everyone knows the emoji® brand. It is such a global phenomenon that the games will certainly capture consumer attention.” added Steven Tan, UNIS General Manager. “We are extremely pleased to be working with the emoji company to bring this iconic brand to the amusement industry.”