- Brera has entered an advisory agreement with Toronto Blizzard to develop talent pathways in global soccer.
- Youth sports are projected to grow to $69.4 billion by 2030, with sports tourism valued at $91.8 billion in 2021.
- The partnership builds on Blizzard’s existing prominence in girls soccer and aims to expand access to international player development.
- Brera plans to connect Blizzard players to its network of clubs in Italy, North Macedonia, Mongolia, and Mozambique.
- Talent identification camps and European academy visits are planned for summer 2026 or sooner.
Brera Holdings (NASDAQ: BREA), an Ireland-based international holding company focused on expanding its global portfolio of men’s and women’s sports clubs through a multi-club ownership (“MCO”) strategy, is expanding into youth soccer development through a strategic partnership with Toronto Blizzard Corp. The initiative is aimed at tapping into the rapidly growing global youth sports industry, which is expected to reach $69.4 billion by 2030, according to Profluence.com (https://ibn.fm/2LmqS).
Under an advisory agreement, Brera will collaborate with the Blizzard, Canada’s leading soccer scholarship platform founded and led by Soccer Hall of Famer Giuseppe “Joe” Parolini, to connect its youth development pipeline to Brera’s international football network. The initiative will focus on expanding opportunities for young players, especially by offering exposure to professional training environments in Europe and beyond.
The Blizzard Development Academy already has a strong track record of preparing youth for college scholarships and professional development. The new agreement aims to strengthen this pipeline by linking Blizzard players, ages 3 to 18, with Brera clubs in Italy, North Macedonia, Mongolia, and Mozambique. These include SS Juve Stabia (Italy’s Serie B), Brera Strumica FC and Brera Tiverija FC in North Macedonia, and others.
Blizzard programs such as “Little Blizzard Kickers” (ages 3 to 7) and advanced academies (ages 8 to 18) will incorporate Brera coaching methods, with shared curriculum and direct interaction with coaches and players from the European clubs.
“Brera Holdings is the perfect partner to help bring new coaching philosophies to talented youth in Ontario. When I took over the ownership of the Blizzard in 1999, ensuring equal opportunities for women and girls to play and receive the same quality of training and development was very important to me,” said Parolini. “Through this partnership I believe we can identify talent, develop and create pathways to other opportunities such as Juve Stabia in Naples where I was born, Brera Strumica and Tiverjia in North Macedonia, the World Squad, and more.”
As part of the agreement, talent identification camps in the Greater Toronto Area are scheduled to begin by summer 2026 or earlier, with selected players gaining opportunities to train at Brera academies in Europe. Blizzard will coordinate and promote the camps, while Brera clubs will deliver coaching and training.
The initiative also targets the rapidly growing sports tourism sector, which had a $91.8 billion economic impact in 2021, as noted by Profluence.com. The collaboration includes plans for friendly matches between Brera-owned clubs and Canadian teams, though these are contingent on financial sustainability.
Beyond immediate player development, the value proposition of the program also lies in college recruitment. According to Profluence, 88% of women’s college soccer players and 77% of men’s come from club-level systems like the Blizzard’s. With private college tuition reaching $33,000 per year (up from $11,000 in 1981), athletic scholarships represent an increasingly important financial opportunity for families.
Brera’s multi-club ownership model is modeled on a broader industry trend, where clubs and holding companies seek to build scalable platforms for player development and commercial opportunities. This deal adds youth infrastructure in North America to Brera’s global reach and diversifies its exposure to the lucrative youth sports economy. With its global football network and commitment to accessible talent development, Brera Holdings is positioning itself not just as an owner of clubs, but as an enabler of cross-border player growth, targeting one of the most dynamic sectors in sports today.
Brera’s Executive Chairman, Daniel J. McClory, emphasized the significance of connecting Canadian youth with international football ecosystems.
“We’ve seen the incredible soccer talent coming from Canada, as well as at the NCAA programs of U.S. universities where Blizzard alumni have distinguished themselves. Our partnership with Toronto Blizzard will allow us to share our clubs’ coaching philosophies as well as identify and help develop young talent in Toronto,” he said. “We look forward to introducing this partnership to the Province of Ontario with the Blizzard, and bringing players to train at the academies of our clubs in Italy and North Macedonia, as these countries enjoy longstanding and particularly strong cross-cultural ties with the Toronto metro area.”
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.BreraHoldings.com.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to BREA are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/BREA
