EXCLUSIVE: How Liverpool intends to become the most 'impactful' platform in sports and entertainment

Liverpool chief commercial officer Ben Latty talks through the club's long-term strategy

Anfield Stadium, home of Liverpool FC (GETTY IMAGES)

And so the dance begins once more.

This evening (Friday, August 16) the Premier League clicks into gear for the 2024/25 campaign where 20 of English football’s elite teams will do battle for the next nine months, what happens on the pitch consuming us again until May.

It’s the only time in the Premier League when there is true parity, the eve of the new season. All teams on the same points tally, all of them with hopes and dreams to achieve something magical for the new season.

Someone will achieve that, but there will be more who are left disappointed. Managers will be sacked, clubs will be relegated and good money will follow bad money in the pursuit of glory, something that not all can achieve, no matter how much it is sold.

Some do things differently than others.

The Premier League is the wealthiest, most lucrative domestic football league on the planet, it has found a way to cut through globally despite the fact that world football’s two biggest powerhouses traditionally, Real Madrid and Barcelona, do not exist within its ecosystem.

It costs a lot to put a successful team on the pitch. Payrolls have long been rising, as has transfer spend, although this summer, for now at least, with two weeks until the end of the window, perhaps heralds something of a step change. Or maybe not.

But rising wages and bigger transfer fees have been able to be absorbed thanks to broadcast revenues rising and more lucrative prize money on offer in Europe for those who qualify. For all clubs, though, there is one area where they have more control, where they can try and make an impact and afford themselves greater flexibility when it comes to meeting financial regulation, and that is commercial revenue.

This week’s Bottom Line is a special one. We sat down with Ben Latty, chief commercial officer for Liverpool, and talked about commercial revenues and their importance, with the Reds having inked a number of new partnerships with blue-chip brands over the past 12 months, not to mention renewals with long-standing partners.

So, what’s to come for the Reds, the Nike deal, and everything in between? You can find out here.