In a recent announcement, StatsBomb revealed a new partnership with Raiola Global Management.
Raiola is a prominent consulting company who, together with their agency partners, specialise in player representation and management. Founded by Mino Raiola, the company has negotiated high-profile transfers for some of the biggest names in football.
The partnership with StatsBomb underscores Raiola Global Management's ability to innovate and adapt to the evolving dynamics of the football industry. Raiola opted to incorporate StatsBomb IQ and 360 Data into their operations to enhance their decision-making. Leveraging these products allows them to identify emerging talents, provide more precise evaluations of player performance, and negotiate deals more effectively on behalf of their clients.
We spoke with Mark Nervegna, Head of Strategy & Analytics, and Stephen Gallagher, Lead Data Scientist at Raiola Global Management about how the company uses data to help their clients and why StatsBomb’s data, analysis tools and services help them stay ahead of the competition.
StatsBomb (SB): How does StatsBomb data help with your partner’s scouting process?
MN: Data is becoming an integral part of our operation – StatsBomb data significantly enhances our partners’ scouting process by eliminating bias and allowing quantifiable insights. Integrating data into their recruitment process and aligning it with our in-person scouts' expertise allows us to identify top talents more effectively and less subjectively. Whether through benchmarking, cluster analysis, indexing, or growth prediction, StatsBomb data has become integral to our model building and recruitment.
In the transfer market, combining StatsBomb data with proprietary intel expedites case creation for player-club matches. This process minimises any risks by aligning the athletes with the clubs that correspond to their career phases and objectives. For instance, we recently leveraged insights and the expertise of our data and scouting team to study the market and identify the ideal fit for one of our partner’s athletes, matching him with a club that shared similar aspirations, playing styles and strategic goals.
(SB): From a scouting service perspective - why are you choosing to integrate data?
MN: Data integration eliminates bias and subjective assertions like "it’s like this because I know it is.” It supports our partners’ scouts in formulating an initial target list, and this collaboration with the experience of the scouts helps us stay at the forefront of the market. Additionally, the data plays a crucial role in identifying the potential of each player.
Each club possesses distinct interests and objectives, with many investing in data collection for strategic development. Entering a meeting armed with detailed answers to potential questions and offering realistic data-driven recommendations not only fosters trust among both our partners’ players and the clubs involved, but prepares us for any possible questions about the athlete which we can answer without subjectivity and instead with data objectively.
(SB): How do you use StatsBomb data to market your partners’ players and help them to present the relevant players to clubs?
SG: The approach varies based on the inputs we receive from our partners with regards to how we engage with the clubs. Some clubs prefer a detailed case with a comprehensive player proposal and valuation, others prefer a concise and direct presentation. Our models and data visualisations are designed to accommodate both of these cases. In these presentations, the reliability of StatsBomb's API is crucial, enabling us to assemble compelling cases and minimise any potential questions from clubs.
(SB): How do you use StatsBomb data to evaluate your partners’ players on a day to day basis?
SG: On a day-to-day basis, we leverage StatsBomb data extensively to conduct thorough evaluations of the players and potential target players. StatsBomb provides valuable insights into key metrics, allowing us to track growth patterns and make data-driven decisions. The data is integrated into our daily player assessment routine, enabling us to stay informed and proactive in optimising the performance and development of the players.
(SB): Can you explain how you build IP values for the commercial value of the players?
MN: Coca-Cola never shared their recipe; we have to protect ours - building intellectual property (IP) values for the commercial worth of our partners’ players involves a comprehensive and thorough approach. We have dedicated significant time and resources to assess the commercial value, balancing tangible and intangible factors in our model. Our data collection spans, amongst others, covering the performance, social media, media coverage, demographics, and macroeconomic data we have on the athletes, each appropriately weighted in our models to establish a negotiation starting point. Additionally, we consider the added value and time athletes can contribute to brands through their proprietary platforms.
(SB): How have you found integrating raw data into your workflows using the StatsBomb API?
SG: Integrating raw data into our workflows using the StatsBomb API has proven to be highly beneficial to our data team. The API facilitates a smooth and efficient transfer of data, allowing us to incorporate it directly into our analytical processes. This integration has enhanced the accuracy and speed of our data-driven decision-making, and the robustness of the StatsBomb API has played a pivotal role in streamlining our operations and ensuring that our workflows are not only efficient but also consistently aligned with the latest and most relevant information available.
Raiola Global Management is fueled by data in all areas of the organisation. The information generated drives us to success in all areas – from communications, social media and digital to partnerships and marketing. We are a service agency that prides itself on being ahead of the curve, and StatsBomb assists us in enabling our business to continue to thrive.
If you are a club, media outlet, player agency or gambling organisation that wants to know more about what we can do for you, contact us to learn more about our products.
Alternatively, If you are a current StatsBomb customer and you would like to complete a case study with our marketing team, please get in touch with us.
