NBA legends' plans for Real Mallorca after turning down Premier League chance
It is a cheap joke but, out of courtesy, Matija Nastasic briefly chuckles. The defender has appeared on a Zoom call in shorts and a T-shirt having stepped indoors from a normal 28c afternoon in Mallorca and the interviewer cannot help but mention it must be very different to rainy Manchester, where he spent three mixed seasons as a City player.
“Big, big difference,” Nastasic says, adding a courtesy laugh. But there is a wider point here because Real Mallorca is a club that leans into the benefits of its location more than perhaps any other club in Europe’s top five leagues.
One of the world’s most recognisable tourist destinations, attracting 17 million visitors a year, is a key reason why a group of former sportsmen from America have decided to become owners of a team that is aiming to do things rather differently compared to its rivals.
NBA legend Steve Kerr, who has won nine titles as a player and coach, was the latest big name to join the ownership ticket this summer, following in the footsteps of Steve Nash, a former MVP whose love of football extends to being a Tottenham fan.
Stuart Holden, the Aberdeen-born former US international, has invested too and the main man is Andy Kohlberg, a former tennis pro who earlier this year became majority shareholder by buying up the shares belonging to the controversial billionaire and long-term business partner Robert Sarver.
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Kohlberg has been club president since 2017 and happens to also be a part-owner of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns - and that overlap is proving vital to Mallorca’s growth plans with both teams exchanging information.
“They are sportsmen who know the industry really well,” Mallorca’s CEO of business Alfonso Diaz tells Mirror Football. “They know what this is all about, that it’s more difficult to win than lose. This perspective makes them see the project as a long-term one where you have to be passionate and invest a lot in terms of effort and hard work.
“We are a 107-year-old club but it’s a start-up with more than a hundred years. That’s the reality. We have a past history but we’re looking to the future in a very different way. Those are our shareholders.”
Steve Kerr, head coach of USA basketball and the Golden State Warriors, became the latest high-profile owner of Real Mallorca (RCD Mallorca)For the players this all matters. The long-term vision has been outlined. The squad is being strengthened window by window and they can physically see the progress in a training ground that has been upgraded and a stadium renovation that has seen the athletics track stripped away to bring fans closer to the pitch.
“The most important thing is the sporting project,” Nastastic says. “People need to see that the club is very organised and there's a project that will grow every year to move up the table.
“That's the first thing to say to someone looking to come here. But the second thing is the lifestyle. The weather is impossible to compare with other cities. It's something special. But first of all, you need to convince someone with the sport things and then the lifestyle comes next.”
But location was a central reason behind Kohlberg and co settling on Mallorca. “They looked at the Premier League, then came to Spain and saw a big potential of growth in La Liga and the clubs,” Diaz says, adding that the La Liga financial fair play rules meant their “investment was safe.”
Other clubs were available yet they were drawn towards the biggest Balearic island. Diaz adds: “This is a unique club, the only one in the region, and that was important for them. There was history, good facilities and a fanbase on an incredible island. All that made them decide to come here.”
It has not been smooth progress, though, and the growth was slower than first envisaged. Mallorca, who also enlisted former England defender Graeme Le Saux to work as a non-executive director, had slumped to the third tier when the new owners came in and while they won consecutive promotions they lasted just one season in La Liga before going back down.
But now they are back in the top flight for a third straight season, with a ninth-place finish in 22/23, a new phase of quicker growth has arrived. Nastastic, who had left as a free agent in the summer only to re-sign at the end of the window, says there is plenty of room for improvement after a slow start that has brought one win but draws against Barcelona and Valencia.
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Eventually, Nastastic says, they should be pushing for the European spots, although consolidating their spot among Spain’s top 20 teams is the immediate priority.
Steve Nash, a former NBA MVP, salutes the Mallorca fans (RCD Mallorca)Off the pitch, the development continues at a more linear pace and as a “small-medium club”, Diaz says, they must always “disrupt and innovate.” Part of that has been targeting growth in Japan and South Korea, spawned by Take Kubo spending two seasons on loan in Palma from Real Madrid. The midfielder may be busy twerking at Real Sociedad now but the relationship fostered by Mallorca and new supporters endures.
Social media accounts in Japanese and Korean were created and now hardly a home game goes past without visitors from the Far East turning up. “We’ve grown our social media output from 500k to almost five million,” the club’s head of communications Albert Salas says.
Yet there is equally an understanding that a ceiling exists. Domestically compared to the historical giants in Madrid and Barcelona; internationally compared to the Premier League’s obscene wealth born from broadcast deals. When it comes to the latter, La Liga clubs are on the same page.
“All the clubs have a commitment, we’re working together to grow internationally,” Diaz says. “We know that’s of big importance. We have a big audience worldwide to impress - and it’s not just through TV.”
Mallorca's Son Moix stadium is being rebuilt to improve the experience for fans and that included ripping up the athletics track and moving the stands closer to the pitchAnd no one is in any doubt that the US-based owners are in this for the long term. “We’re always in contact,” Diaz continues. “They know everything we’re doing here. They are very open but leave us make the decisions. It’s collaborative. We’ll discuss things and go through the best options but the owners know perfectly.
“They are visiting us, they love the island and the club and want to be here and be a part of it. When we have new ideas or doubts we have the option to pick up the phone and call. They are big assets for the club, they are more than owners.”
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