Borussia Dortmund to earn €5 million from Japan marketing tour

Word had quickly spread about which hotel Borussia Dortmund was staying at in Osaka. For days, fans have been standing in front of the entrance of the "Conrad" waiting for the stars and their autographs.

This is the first stop of Borussia's annual marketing tour. After three days in Osaka, where the club will test against Cerezo Osaka on Wednesday (12 PM German time), the trip continues to Tokyo. There, the match against FC Tokyo will take place on Saturday (12 PM German time).

Warming up at the hotel: BVB at the team hotel in Osaka. Photo: BVB/Hendrik Deckers

Financial Impact

For Dortmund, the trip is not only attractive for showcasing the black-and-yellow colors in Asia, but also from an economic perspective. According to BILD information, the Revier club is earning around five million euros from the trip. The revenue primarily comes from:

• Fees for sponsorship appointments
• Income from the test matches on site

This is helped by the fact that the Bundesliga financially supports marketing trips of Bundesliga clubs for travel costs, provided they involve countries that are important for the league – which is the case with Japan.

Players including Daniel Svensson, Almugera Kabar, Waldemar Anton, and Mathis Albert (from right) use the time for a raft ride with Japanese fans. Photo: BVB/Hendrik Deckers

Future Sponsorship Opportunities

And that's not all from Dortmund's perspective: The management also used the Asia trip to prepare and finalize the next well-endowed sponsorship contracts. BILD knows: Due to the various infrastructure projects in Dortmund (stadium modernization, expansion of the training ground, construction of the health world), BVB is a sought-after partner for industrial partners, especially in the areas of climate and heating.

Companies like "Yanmar" and "Panasonic" (based in Osaka) or "Daikin" and "Mitsubishi" are apparently showing interest in becoming partners of BVB, and more than just initial information was exchanged on site. Each involves seven-figure sums per year. In the context of the infrastructural renovations in Dortmund, the companies want to support the club with their technical equipment.

Meeting in front of Osaka Castle: The BVB team met beforehand with players from Cerezo Osaka. Photo: BVB/Harry Ahn

Management Perspective

Dortmund's managing director Carsten Cramer (57) assesses the trip, which is quite strenuous for the players not only because of the local climate, positively:

"We should be aware of the opportunities that lie in international marketing and not always immediately talk about a possible risk. I find it a shame that after the World Cup, only Bayern and we are going on trips."