Gerard Piqué, the former FC Barcelona defender turned entrepreneur, made his debut this week as a guest lecturer at Harvard University in Boston. Speaking to MBA students enrolled in the renowned “Business of Entertainment, Media, and Sports” course, Piqué explored the rapid growth of the Kings League, a seven-a-side football competition he founded, and its potential to reshape the sporting landscape.
Invited by Professor Anita Elberse, a leading authority on sports and media, alongside associate researcher David Moreno, Piqué discussed how the Kings League has leveraged social media and fan engagement to create a fresh, digital-first football experience. Matches, which feature teams led by content creators, celebrities, and football legends, have drawn millions of viewers online, with a Final Four in Barcelona’s 93,000-seat stadium reaching over two million concurrent viewers.
“It’s an honor for the Kings League to be analyzed by such a respected institution as Harvard Business School,” Piqué said. “Our goal has been to reinvent football for a new generation, and we are incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved in just three years. The HBS case study validates the impact of our work.”
The competition, which launched in Spain on January 1, 2023, has since expanded internationally, with editions in Mexico, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, the Middle East, and North Africa. Women’s competitions under the Queens League banner and international tournaments like the Kings League World Cup for clubs and nations further illustrate the league’s rapid growth.
It’s not the first time the defender has been associated with the prestigious school.
During a previous Harvard session in September 2017, Piqué touched on his former club’s philosophy, highlighting its balance between local identity and global reach. He praised the La Masia academy as “one of the main pillars supporting our club” and emphasized that “the most important thing is not the sports performance of today’s youth, but rather the added value of letting them get to know the club and what it is they represent.”
Piqué’s lecture coincides with a record-breaking October for the Kings League, which generated over 2 billion social media impressions, 1.3 billion views, and 2.5 million new followers. Students ended the session by taking a group photo with Piqué, many sporting FC Barcelona jerseys, marking the league’s continued momentum and global influence.
