Yet non of them go. It amazes me when rags say we are the most supported club in the world. Do they honestly think these supporters in Asia and Africa nip down to their local Rag store and buy a legitimate shirt.
They don't think that. They have the figures to prove it doesn't happen.
What they do believe is that there's a cohort of people who think their logo/crest on noodles or whatever product will encourage their kids to eat up or brush their teeth or whatever.
Probably, there are adults in parts of the world who believe that the United endorsement is a stamp of quality/ holds a certain caché of street credibility (I know, I know!).The same way as people in Tooting, Tipperary and Timbuktu will happily buy into Air Jordans without ever knowing who Michael Jordan played for.
These Glazers know exactly what they're selling - and the companies who are dealing with them know exactly what they're buying. Equally, it must be said, the end-users are getting what they want: credibility by association.
t
If you think of a newspaper article or a TV show as a product that needs selling, it's very easy to see the reason too why TV companies are up their arse, churning out rehashed documentaries. They can show the 99th "Poor Georgie Best" documentary and be virtually guaranteed and audience to sell to advertising agencies. Similarly, they can sell the same documentary to overseas territories, pointing to it's success, the pulling power of the United attachment etc etc.
We might not like it because we don't like them but there's no denying' that it's very good business model - and (and the New York Yankees are a fairly good example of this) not one that's likely to go under through a mere ten years of underachievement.
Where it has been working to our advantage of late is that the Glazers are prioritizing the business side at the expense of the bread and butter football side. End of pier - oops! - end of career marquee signings to boost brand awareness being the most glaring example. Lack of investment in infrastructure - (much to the chagrin of Neville and other investors in Hotel Football) there is unlikely to be a Man United World all around Old Trafford any time soon. They'll have looked at the City Experience and found the whole Match Day Experience vibe doesn't generate the same buzz amongst (read profit from) English Football fans as it does in those terminally boring, all-day-long American sports.
City fans might enjoy the benefits of the new complex but until City's matchday income starts to rival United's, the Glazers clearly aren't going to provide anything like the same comforts at Old Trafford.
They're in it for profit. Football isn't even secondary in their thoughts. It's way lower down the list. They see it as an expenditure. It might be sacred to the fans (even some United fans) but if the Glazers thought they'd get away with making more money by turning Manchester United into a baseball franchise, they'd do it in a heartbeat.
So would I - and I hate them.
