Why Newcastle should explore Asia.
Posted on June 17th, 2010 | 138 Comments |
So why have Newcastle never really been interested in expanding their footballing, cultural and commercial horizons by trying to sign any of them?
I must point out that I am not just talking about now, but historically aswell. There have been players out there, and there still are players out there, who could come and do a job for us in the Premier League. So why not explore that opportunity and look into the possibility of signing a player from Asia that would not only help us on the pitch, but also help us swell our bank balance at the same time?
It is widely documented that signing a player from the Asian continent can provide a massive boost to merchandising sales within a particular club. The market over that side of the world is massive, and full of fans who are mad about the Premier League, so by signing one of their players we could benefit greatly from the increased revenue it would generate as people turn their attention towards where one of their compatriots is playing instead of perhaps another club.
It is something that Manchester United have done with South Korea captain Park Ji-Sung (as pictured). Now whilst he is a good player, and whilst his work ethic can’t be question, would anybody be willing to concede that his signing was also timed to coincide with a campaign by Manchester United to make them a global brand? Exactly, so why can’t we try to do the same thing?
The problem is that teams like Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool have a global appeal already, and so do we up to a point, but that doesn’t stop the others working on it and making that appeal stronger whilst we have stood still. Granted, Manchester United are the only team to sign an Asian player and stick with him, but all the rest have recently made moves to try get a foot in the door of the Asian market.
It doesn’t have to be purely down to the signing of a player though, as there are other ways to grow a fanbase abroad. Pre-season friendly tournaments featuring Premier League teams draw a huge interest in Asia, and undoubtedly there will be a few fans who decide to follow a particluar team when they see them in action, the same way that some of us started following Newcastle no doubt.
I am not talking about us acquiring vast swathes of fans throughout Asia, but it would only take a tiny percentage of them to buy into what Newcastle United is about to make a huge difference. This is of course not exclusive to Asia, and both the USA and Africa present the opportunity to tap into relatively untested markets.
Football is a global game nowadays, so it makes sense for us to try and get the biggest share of the global market we can possibly get. Granted we are up against it a bit as we don’t really win anything of note and it is far easier for people to choose to support a winning team, but as I said, it would only take a small percentage of the audience to make a huge difference for us.
Would be a good idea – S.Korea, Japan, and N.Korea have all had impressive performances.