In front of a fully packed TFS Stage, Frederico Varandas, President of Sporting CP, opened the guest panel at the Thinking Football Summit 2024. In an interview conducted by Vanda Cipriano, Content and Broadcasting Operations Coordinator for Liga Portugal, the Sporting leader began by discussing the club's recent triumph as National Champions of Liga Portugal Betclic 2023-24.

"We tried to be as competent and efficient as possible. We have two very strong rivals, but Sporting CP proved to be the strongest throughout the season. Two titles? It's two titles in four years, and we firmly believe it can happen again," he began, also praising the squad and Sporting's player development program.

"I can't recall having such a valuable group of players, but we need to prove it season after season. I'm very proud of the team and the project we started six years ago. The Academy is also a key part of this project. Recently, we used six youth players in one game and five in another, with eight in the squad overall. That's something we want to maintain," Varandas stated.

The new format of the UEFA Champions League was another topic discussed, with Frederico Varandas expressing his hopes for the national teams’ performance in the competition, while also highlighting the financial evolution. "Let's see how Portuguese teams fare in this new format. Eight games instead of six is already a positive change, and it's crucial to have this platform, especially for the financial aspect," he said, before making a significant statement about the club’s future. "In the past six years, we've increased our turnover by 50 percent. This is undoubtedly due to the work of our structure. It's time for us to consider a strategic partner who can further boost our sporting project. However, the club will always retain the majority, and the final say will always rest with our members," he revealed.

The Sporting CP president also addressed the centralization of audiovisual rights, sharing the club's stance. "We believe it's possible for the biggest clubs not to take a step backward while enabling the so-called smaller clubs to move forward. This is commendable work by the Liga Portugal Board, particularly by President Pedro Proença, who has made significant progress in this area," he emphasized, also acknowledging the role of the Professional Football governing body in fostering the growth of Portuguese football, particularly through initiatives like the Thinking Football Summit.

"It's fantastic. It's essential to bring together national and international football stakeholders, as well as partners who can help our football grow. We all want to win on the pitch, but we also want to see Portuguese football thrive," he concluded.