Footballco buys control of soccer agency Starting Eleven in first services deal
What's the deal? FootballcoDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, the London-based soccer media and culture company, has taken a controlling stake in Kansas City creative and production agency Starting ElevenDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. Financial terms were not disclosed. It is Footballco's first investment in creative and production services, after a run of consumer-facing media acquisitions.
What's the endgame? The deal is meant to broaden Footballco's studios offering in North America and beyond, boosting work on long-form features, commercial videos, and global productions. The target: brands and rights holders in the growing US soccer market.
Why now? The move comes just after the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where Starting Eleven supplied more than 100 crew members to FIFA and official partners across commercial, feature, social, event, and stills content. The two companies have already worked together on campaigns for clients including Modelo, Kia, and E.l.f. Cosmetics.
What does Starting Eleven bring? The agency has built its reputation through work with FIFA, EA Sports, and MLS. Its credits include the MLS docuseries "Breakaway," now in its fourth season on Apple TV; cover shoots for EAFC 24; a DAZN mini-series tied to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup; and the documentary "Messi Mania."
Footballco's earlier deals include Middle Eastern publisher KooraDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, soccer culture outlet Mundial, animation channel 442oons, and women's soccer brand Soccer Girl. Led by flagship brand Goal, it says its portfolio now reaches 20 million US soccer fans per month.
The signal: The acquisition marks Footballco's steady US buildout, from a House of Goal pop-up in Brooklyn during the World Cup — projected to draw roughly 200,000 visitors — to adding women's brand SoccerGrlProbs in May 2025. Moving into production services shows media firms increasingly want to own the content pipeline, not just distribute it.
Read more: Sports Business Journal
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
