Manchester United are at the front of the queue to take advantage of an £860 million American opportunity

This summer, Manchester United, like many major European clubs, will cross the Atlantic for a pre-season tour of North America.

The club’s preparations for the 2024/25 season will see them play three matches at three locations; Columbia, South Carolina; Inglewood, California; and San Diego, California, with matches against Arsenal, Liverpool and Real Betis scheduled.

Touring the US and trying to grab a slice of market share is not a new phenomenon for football clubs, and this summer United will join Chelsea and Manchester City, as well as Arsenal and Liverpool, in trying to sell their products to the sport. -loving American audience.

But because “soccer” has been such a hard sell for so long, given the competition from major US sports leagues like the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB and MLS, it is finally starting to enter the mainstream in the US, with the Premier League comes first when it comes to winning that battle. The Premier League’s current broadcast deal with NBC in America is worth £2 billion, 20% of the Premier League’s total broadcast revenue, and that is something that is expected to increase in the next cycle at a time when, in real terms, broadcast values ​​are broadcast on the Internet. the home ground has stagnated.

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With the World Cup heading to the United States in 2026 and more fans than ever involved in what the Premier League has to offer, tapping into such a potential revenue source comes at a time when England’s biggest clubs are tasked with to fight against rising wages and transfer fees, while having to cope with stricter financial regulations in an industry where annual profitability is rare, the value being the annual value of the club itself. United are currently valued at over £5 billion, the highest of any football club in the world.

But how valuable are the potential opportunities for clubs like Manchester United, and how can they best make use of the undecided American fans who may be persuaded where their loyalties lie for years to come?

Direct-to-consumer fan data company CLV Group works with sports teams to identify and unlock revenue opportunities from potential new fan bases. A report from the company shows that as much as $1.1 billion (£860 million) is up for grabs for European clubs in the United States. the American market is moving forward.

According to the report, there are between two and a half million and nine million American fans of European clubs – each – who are still unknown to them. According to data insights from CLV, that doesn’t include the 44% of American “soccer fans” (36.5 million) who, despite their passion for the sport, still haven’t decided which team to support.

The CLV Group report claims there is the potential for clubs to multiply current US fandom three to five times over the next twelve months.

“European football clubs have historically lacked the need, data and technology to drive such transformative growth,” said Neil Joyce, co-founder and CEO of CLV Group.

“However, combined with the increasing popularity of soccer in the US, the sheer size of soccer fans, 88 million in participants, followers and viewers, plus those with an affinity for the sport, now is the time to capitalize.

“Think of LeBron James’ recent partnership with Liverpool FC – or how Taylor Swift’s appearance at the Super Bowl provided a huge financial boost to the NFL, not to mention the impact at Anfield last weekend. Or even Juventus’ recent ‘Team Jay’ series to engage their younger fanbase through anime. These are the areas our clubs need to embrace now.

CLV’s data showed that Manchester United are the Premier League team that will make the most of the US market – with a potential opportunity of $40.7 million. Manchester City came in second with $34.3 million, Chelsea third with $27.3 million and Arsenal fourth with $22.3 million. The Premier League quartet is overshadowed by European giants Real Madrid, who are set to win $61 million from the US odds, according to the data, which is compiled from a number of multiple data signals, such as CLV’s own data, MasterCard, Affinity Data Solutions, Starcount Group and X Corp.

CLV report – Connecting American Fandoms and Winning: A Guide to European Soccer Clubs – also highlighted that while the average British Premier League fan is around 42 years old, 50% of American football fans are under 45 years old.

“With the profit and sustainability rules in place and even more robust new financial rules in the pipeline, it is absolutely critical to generate new revenue now,” Joyce said.

“We know that clubs such as Manchester United and Arsenal already regularly go on summer tours to the US, but our unique data shows that there are now so many more opportunities for them there.

“The US market is ready for Premier League clubs to capture the hearts, minds and wallets of undecided, unknown fans – whether through selling merchandise directly to fans, or pursuing partnerships in other sports, collaborations with video games, music and content creators. The opportunity is enormous. We’re talking about a potential fan base of 36 million undecided American soccer fans (not to mention the fans who know the clubs but don’t know the clubs themselves) that can be connected and engaged, creating enormous sources of growth across the whole world came into existence. the board to the clubs.

If they don’t, there is no doubt that the organic growth of Major League Soccer, not to mention other European heavyweights like Real Madrid, Barcelona, ​​PSG and Bayern Munich, will be there to seize the opportunities.”

Of the possible ways for Manchester United to generate revenue in the US market in the future, joining star power is key, with pop icon Harry Styles, a United fan who attracted a lot of attention when he watched the match last season club at Luton Town. , which offers a way to do things like merchandise collaborations to reach new demographics who may not have been into “football” before, but were willing consumers of merchandise related to their favorite music stars.

The report noted: “A limited-edition Manchester United x Harry Styles collection would leverage the singer’s fashion influence and attract a younger, style-conscious audience.

“This collection could include co-branded clothing and accessories that would be sold online and in club stores with special releases during key matches or tours to expand the club’s market reach and enhance its image.”

Knowing who a club’s fans are and what they are interested in is at the heart of CLV’s data approach, with United data pointing to a strong interest in fashion and relatively untapped revenue like anime (United had a lucrative activation with Noodle firm Nissin in 2014 which converts player images into Japanese-style anime characters) and existing synergies with other brands linked to ownership, slightly reinforced by the arrival of INEOS as minority owners, with INEOS being the main partner of Formula 1 team Mercedes, as well as owner is of sporting assets, including OGC Nice, and is involved in the production of high-quality cars with the INEOS Grenadier.