Opening up an unrivalled international network

After a rise from the second division in Germany to the UEFA Champions League in four years, 1. FC Union Berlin’s international reputation has grown quickly.

But it can take a long time to build a huge network of contacts to maximise a club’s opportunities for continued success in the global transfer market, and even then, getting access to the key decision-makers is a tougher challenge.

Now, Union Berlin are able to connect directly with the right people at more than 700 clubs across over 100 leagues and 60 countries, all at the click of a button on one platform. 

They have joined TransferRoom, world football’s digital marketplace.

Not only have they opened up access to the world’s biggest contacts book of club decision-makers, plus over 400 Trusted Agencies, but they can now see which players are available, and what other clubs are looking for.

“The accessibility to so many clubs, the direct access to the clubs, especially when it comes to transfer talks, is the biggest benefit,” Technical Director Michael Parensen said in the video below. 

“The fact that you have really short routes to transfer business, that you have a wide range of options, especially when you consider that you're talking about players. If you have players in the squad where you're looking to make a change, then I think it's a very good opportunity to use this network to have as many contacts as possible.

“Especially when we talk about outplacement, I think it is a great support. We are confident that, through the contacts and direct channels to the decision-makers, we will get quick decisions and we will get a variety of opportunities. And that is the main route we are looking for with TransferRoom.

“Apart from that, it's also about recruiting, perhaps to see other markets where we're not that well represented. I'd say, in Europe perhaps we’re represented quite well, but we're not yet so well represented worldwide and we didn’t have access to all markets. TransferRoom will definitely play a role in enabling us to gain more opportunities globally.”

 Parensen with TransferRoom's Business Development Manager, Marc Becker, and Customer Success Manager, Tom Seeger

Parensen was speaking at the TransferRoom Summit in Lisbon. Union Berlin were one of over 400 clubs attending the Lisbon & Online event in November 2023, giving them the chance to hold fast-paced transfer talks with decision makers from hundreds of other teams from the global game.

In-person TransferRoom Summits are held a few times a year in key markets around the world, while the next online event is the TransferRoom Winter Virtual Deal Day on 15 January 2024. Register here.