Manchester United Merchandise

Football's fight for fans in the US

I recently met an avid American soccer fan who had fallen for the game after the 2006 World Cup. Searching for a team to support, he originally pledged allegiance to then-Premier League champion Chelsea, but Gareth Bale 's swashbuckling displays encouraged a transfer of his affections, and he recently morphed into a Tottenham fan.

On a trip to England last month, the fan was explaining his defection to a London cab driver who listened patiently before responding, "Can I be honest with you Guv'nor?"

"Yes," he replied.

"You can change your wife. You can change your underpants. But you can never, ever change your team."

The cabbie's rules may be right in Europe, where the club you support is passed through the generations down the family bloodline. But it is not true in the U.S., where a spike in television ratings has catalyzed an anarchical glut of curious new fans desperate to define a rooting interest. Teams are often selected for the most random of reasons: distant family ties, a haircut similar to a star player or a childhood vacation spent by chance in Blackburn.

The big European clubs are well aware that the 2010 World Cup has increased the sport's popularity in the U.S., fostering a lucrative market. Witness America's recent transformation into a vast continental training ground for leading European clubs such as Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester City and Juventus, culminating in the delirious All-Star spectacle showcasing Manchester United.

The Europeans are not only here to shake off the preseason rust, or to cash in their appearance money (Manchester United is reported to be bagging an estimated $9.2 million in appearance fees from its tour). Their ultimate goal is to grab curious Americans' attention and hook them on their club brand for life.

Manchester United estimates it has more than 6.5 million fans in the U.S., a number it would like to grow precipitously. Other than trumping the MLS All-Star team, or playing a glorified training session against a fellow giant, what longer-term branding and marketing strategies can the club employ to seduce new American fans?

Or, more simply put, what will make the difference between an American fan choosing Manchester United or Manchester City? Or Barcelona, Real Madrid or AC Milan, for that matter. I solicited the opinions of two marketing agency founders, Jon Cohen, CEO of Fader and Cornerstone, and Ian Schafer, the CEO of Deep Focus, as well as Boston Red Sox executive vice president and COO Sam Kennedy, who has been processing these issues since New England Sports Ventures' acquisition of Liverpool FC in 2010.

Wayne Rooney briefly sparks child trafficking emergency »

Fresh from showing off his new hair , Manchester United star Wayne Rooney temporarily caused internet outrage after seemingly implying that he had bought a child at the airport.

En-route to his holidays, Rooney tweeted: “Just bought Kai the new man utd kid from jd in airport. He will look so cute in it.

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