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In the 6th issue of the FMA Quarterly, we interviewed Hervé Blanchard (FMA’03). Due to limited space, we published only a small edited version of the interview on our newsletter. Here, you can find the full interview.

If you meet Hervé Blanchard (FMA’11) among a large group of friends, he’s certainly one who won’t pass unnoticed. He is an outspoken man who’s always happy to express his point of view – especially if that’s not the consensus one. Some may call him controversial. And that is something that comes from very young age. Born in Montreal, son of a Catalan mother and Haitian father, he says his youth revolved pretty much around two things: “getting in trouble and sports”. A simple question such as “Where are you from?” will be followed by a not-so-simple reply: “Although my passports make me Canadian and Spanish, my patriotic allegiances only belong to Quebec and Catalunya”, he says. Then he (tries to) explain: “it’s not a matter of geopolitics or history; just the genuine sentiment of one who was fortunate enough to integrate himself in both these ‘countries’”. You see, Hervé is an “interesting” character! 

An interesting character with a quite interesting job too. He’s a Sponsorship Account Manager at one of European football giants, FC Barcelona. “I always had a dream to one day work for this club, and I knew it in my guts that it would happen sooner or later”, he says. Every day that passes-by and allows me to walk-in past the Club crest at the offices’ entrance door is worth a “Yippee-ki-yay”. 

This is actually the second time Hervé works for FC Barça. “A few months after I finished Uni came a call with an opportunity to intern at the club’s Foundation; which I jumped upon immediately and spent 2 years”, he recalls. “The club was like an adoptive family when I was freshly landed from Montreal; contributing to my education and training as a professional, inculcating values and work ethic, taking me to countries such as Mali and Ecuador as a representative of its Foundational work… I owe this place and its people a lot”. 

Nevertheless, even as a Barça fan, Hervé wouldn’t have a problem in working for a different club. “I surely could and would like to, but it needs to be as meaningful as an institution to me as FC Barcelona is. MLS Montreal Impact is definitely somewhere I would love to go in the future; I remember where I’m from”. 

Hervé is also very grateful for having done the FIFA Master. “The FIFA Master is probably the best investment opportunity I chose to make for my future and myself. I would do it again if they allowed me to register for free”! 

FMA Quarterly: Tell us about working for Barça?
Hervé Blanchard: I always had a dream to one day work for FC Barcelona, and I knew it in my guts that it would happen sooner or later. This Club is a lot more than just football. I would need an entire magazine to get started on that topic. For me, it played the role of an adoptive family when I was freshly landed from Montreal; contributing to my education and training as a professional, inculcating values and work ethic, taking me to countries such as Mali and Ecuador as a representative of its Foundational work…I owe this place and its people a lot.

I surely could and would like to but it would have to be as meaningful of an institution to me as FC Barcelona is. I’ve been a nomad for the past 5 years so stability and continuity are all I need at this point in time. Nevertheless, MLS Montreal Impact is definitely somewhere I would love to go in the future; I remember where I’m from.

FMA: Before the FIFA Master you studied Political Science at McGill University and then went to Barcelona Foundation?
HB: I wanted to bring together what I had learned during my undergraduate studies with sport…Interestingly enough its thanks to a book, “Football et Mondialisation” by Pascal Boniface, that I saw unveil what I really want to do and work in.

FMA: What did you do afterwards – before going to Barcelona?
HB: After the FIFA Masters I wanted to go back to Barcelona, but things didn’t go as planned. I took some long vacations; 4 months actually. I needed to regain some perspective on the sport industry and what I really wanted to do and accomplish in it.

I had the opportunity to join the IOC in Lausanne for a one-year internship within its International Cooperation & Development Department. I did my time in Lausanne-geles (to make it a bit more glamorous) but decided that the IOC wasn’t a good fit for what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go with it. Once again I found myself at a professional crossroads…and chose to do exactly the same thing as the first time…vacation. 

FMA: How did you land the job with Barça? How did you hear about it and how was the selection process?
HB: After 4 months of brutal Canadian winter suffering, an unexpected blackberry alert woke me up one morning at 6am…the email was from FCB and entitled “call me”. It was a professional bootie-call, I knew it; that same gut feeling was back from when I was a kid. 2 weeks later I was back where I wanted to be.

I had kept in touch with the people there over the years, they knew how much it meant to me to work there, and my profile was fitted their necessities at that point so I didn’t even have to chase an opening; the opening came chasing for me.

FMA: Tell us a bit about what your job is like, day to day. What is the best thing about your job? And the worst thing?
HB: Sponsorship account management was something I didn’t know much about when I started but it grew on me every day. Much of the daily work requires dialogue with partners/sponsors or agencies that represent them to handle, administrate, implement and activate the relation between two entities tied by a contract, with the objective to maximize return on investment for the client…obviously in hopes to re-sign him for more!!! It goes from boring accounting in terms of tracking receivables to taking part in the shaping of activation campaigns for sponsors or going to shootings with players and sponsors. The business lunches are usually the best, and receiving work calls while on vacation at 07.00am…that speaks for itself.

FMA: What did you think of your experience at the FIFA Master? What was the best thing about it?
HB: I would do it again if they allowed me to register for free. Entering the work/professional realm was a different experience to being in school or university, and I missed the class atmosphere that most office spaces did not have. The FIFA Master is probably the best investment opportunity I chose to make for my future and myself.  While still at FCB and knowing I had been accepted to the Masters, I had met with two alumni (Andre Zanotta & Duncan Tweed) who came to visit the Club in the framework of their final project, I asked them a bunch of questions about the program, shared with them my concerns, etc…they did a great job to keep me grounded and give me a fair view of what the upcoming year of my life would look like. That was the little I knew of the program until the first day I set foot in Kingfisher Court Residence and found myself surrounded with lovely people from all over the world, with all kinds of diverse experiences and backgrounds and so much knowledge about sport. 10 months later, after living in Leicester, Milano and Neuchatel, it was tough realizing it had ended and we were all going to be scattered all over the world once again. But that’s what makes it so good in the end; because we’re growing more global than McDonalds’.

FMA: How important was it for your career in sports?
HB: ESSENTIAL. Friends, Contacts and accessibility of the network of alumni and teaching professors, knowledge, discovering, work ethic…it got me well prepared to face up to and embrace everyday at the office. Even for the dirtier days/weeks of deskwork.

FMA: How connected are you to your former classmates? What about other alumni?
HB: Thank you Facebook and Whatsapp (BBM is out of style…or am I?!?!) because my people are scattered all over the world and there is no way I could keep up with their activities or my phone bills. I try my best to keep in touch with my former 11th edition classmates…it was much easier when I had them across the hallway or right next door. Some of them I speak to regularly and to my latest surprise I might be getting to work in collaboration with Shin Achiwa (Dentsu, Japan).

As per the other alumnis, I have to recognize being in Switzerland allowed me to get to know a lot of them whether for work or partying. The facebook group and FMA website are great tools that enhance and facilitate communication and accessibility. As well, I try my best to partake every year to the Annual Pierre Lanfranchi Cup opposing FMA and FIFA; its an amazing way to catch up with all. 

Short profile:
   Hervé Blanchard, 32, Canadian/Spanish
   Tours and Exhibition Games Manager at FC Barcelona
Football club: My heart only belongs to one, FC BARCELONA
Most memorable sporting moment: Andrés Iniesta Goal. UEFA Champions League Semi-Final @ Stamford Bridge 06/05/2009.