For this episode of The Sports Marketeer, I caught up with Louise Bach, Global Sponsorship Director at Carlsberg, about the brand’s iconic 30+ year partnership with Liverpool FC.
Louise is one of the most accomplished sponsorship professionals I have come across in the business and it was fascinating to understand more about what makes her tick and the strategy behind a collaboration that has been venerated for years.

We explored how the Liverpool FC partnership helped Carlsberg accelerate its global growth in the 1990s, the club’s deep ties to Scandinavia, and the brand’s commitment to responsible marketing -including thoughtful decisions around Player of the Match awards and alcohol-free celebrations.

For example, Carlsberg are very respect of the religious beliefs of Mohamed Salah, while they also recently benefitted from players such as Alisson Becker, who enjoyed his celebratory moment with a Carlsberg during Liverpool's title celebrations.

Louise shares insights into Carlsberg’s innovative fan-first campaigns, capitalising on Liverpool’s title celebrations, how they adapt to industry shifts like Gen Z drinking less, and the rise of 0.0 beer. The conversation also covers Carlsberg’s growing investment in women’s football, their recently-announced UEFA sponsorship, and Louise’s passion for empowering women in sports business.