Manchester United Seeks To Boost Profile In India

Gill Says ManU Making Concerted Effort To Expand Commercial Interests In India

ACTIVATION: In London, James Ducker reports once ManU primary sponsor AIG "has settled on the right partner," ManU expects to "launch a credit card in India in the next six months." Also "being given serious consideration" is "establishing a series of football schools in the country, much as they have elsewhere in the world." Of ManU's estimated 333 million fans worldwide, "[20 million] live in India's urban population, more than half of whom are said to be 'core' fans" (LONDON TIMES, 7/25).

AMERICA CALLING? The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Jon Weinbach reports a handful of club teams from Europe -- Chelsea, Arsenal, Everton and Portugal's Benfica -- have been working to "establish outposts" in the U.S. The clubs' goal is to "tap into the massive U.S. youth soccer market, which has about four million registered male players." However, the American soccer establishment "is skeptical," as some soccer execs "think the European clubs are more interested in ginning up marketing dollars than cultivating American strikers." Thus far, Arsenal, Everton and Chelsea "have committed to creating new academies or have established formal ties with U.S. youth clubs in Colorado, Pennsylvania and North Carolina." French club AS Monaco also "just signed a wide-ranging partnership with a top youth team in Chicago," while Benfica "now funds junior teams in New Jersey and Arizona" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 7/25).

Print This Article