Berliner Fussball-Verband: One Team Berlin
In a city as dynamic, diverse, and fast-paced as Berlin, it's easy to get lost in the noise. That’s why the Berliner Fußball-Verband (BFV)—the heartbeat of amateur football in the capital—needed more than just a visual refresh. They needed a story. A sense of purpose. A voice that resonates.
Together with my creative partner Patrick and the Mindroom Agency, we embarked on a transformative branding journey with the BFV. Our goal: to redefine the perception of amateur football in Berlin and reconnect the BFV with the people it serves—not as a distant institution, but as a vital, unifying force in the lives of hundreds of thousands.
This project was more than a strategy sprint. It was a deep dive into Berlin’s identity, its contradictions, and its communities. Through workshops, field observations, meditation sessions, and powerful conversations, we unearthed what truly makes Berlin’s amateur football scene unique—and why the city needs it now more than ever.
At Mindroom, Pat and I often experience that the best ideas don’t come during the workshops, but between them—when all the input has had time to settle and the subconscious begins to do its work.
Ideas don’t just appear out of nowhere in the shower, the car, or during a walk. They emerge because we’ve previously fed our minds with relevant insights, information, and impulses.
Much like building muscle, creative thinking requires both tension and release. It’s the combination of intense discussion, collaboration, and deep focus and the moments of silence, distance, and reflection that lead to truly original and impactful ideas.
WHAT STORY IS THE BFV TELLING?
This workshop was primarily about answering the following questions: Why does Berlin need amateur football? What makes Berlin’s amateur football unique? And what would happen if the BFV didn’t exist?
From all the input gathered across the three workshops, the core idea that emerged during the meditation, the observations in Berlin, at the BFV, and at Hansa 07—I derived the direction for the fourth and final workshop. The goal was for everyone involved to understand, internalize, and identify with this direction:
Berlin is a city of freedom, where you can do what you want and be whoever you want. But because of the city’s size, anonymity, overstimulation, fast pace, and lack of commitment, many people feel lonely and lost. I sense that in myself and in so many others here. Everything that Berlin can’t give you because of these factors—amateur football can.
The city of freedom needs amateur football more than any other city, because it provides people with stability, belonging, community, structure, identity, self-confidence, and a social home. Amateur football brings calm to the capital, order to the chaos, and belonging to the anonymity.
That is the story you need to tell, believe in, and live! Right now, that’s not being communicated—because amateur football and the BFV are taken for granted. Because you're only talking about facts and not telling a story. Just imagine for a moment: if amateur football didn’t exist in Berlin, it would be an absolute catastrophe!
If you truly understand the massive impact the BFV—and that means every single one of you—has on the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in this city, it will change everything. You’ll come to work with a whole new mindset. You’ll advocate for amateur football with much more confidence. You’ll make decisions with greater clarity. You’ll show up more openly and communally—and you’ll connect with people on an entirely different level.
A Vision Is More Than Just a Vision
Together, we defined the new brand mission, brand vision, core values, and brand voice.
The new vision is: ONE TEAM BERLIN
The new mission is: Because WE need amateur football
Until now, the BFV has often been perceived as an authoritarian and unapproachable institution. But with this new strategy, that is going to change.
