Anthony Fairclough has moved on...

[Rileybobs]

The global football fan market has the potential to be far larger than any Land Rover market will ever be.

Interestingly I've just popped onto the clarets store and I've noticed it's been upgraded since I last looked prior to Xmas.

We’re not talking about the global football fan market though are we. Comparing BFC with Land Rover just isn’t worthwhile.

[cricketfieldclarets]

Those are off the field factors. The on field is that for as long as we are not one of the three worst teams in the league, we will continue to compete at this level. With the manager in place, we're in a good position to do that and have proven we can continue to do so.

What's more, on the field there are guarantees. 17 teams survive in the Premier League each season and it's totally in our power to be one of them and reap the benefits. Barring real catastrophe off the field, that's sustainable.

Off the field as you rightly point out, there are no guarantees. It's not easier at all because the market may simply not be there and if it is we may not have access to it. On the field, we're in the process of fairly comfortably retaining our status for yet another season.

Think it’s fair to say we both have our opinions. Nothing else I can or can be bothered adding.

Hopefully the club and in particular new reigime have the ambition needed to capitalise.

[cricketfieldclarets]

The global football fan market has the potential to be far larger than any Land Rover market will ever be.

Interestingly I've just popped onto the clarets store and I've noticed it's been upgraded since I last looked prior to Xmas.

It already is. By an absolute mile.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

https://www.uksoccershop.com/football-s ... ue/burnley

Uh oh, some of you aren't gonna be happy, our products can be purchased from around the world via this Web store.
I'd be interested to see their sales figures for our products tbh.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

It already is. By an absolute mile.

I meant just for Burnley

[Rileybobs]

I am also sorry but all I hear you saying is it can't be done, you're nit picking on the US store and stock and it's been agreed with, if nothing else changes then you're right. Your house analogy is just not worth discussing,

I don't think you're being realistic, because you don't know the plan so how on earth can you be realistic about it? Yet I do see you as negative because you have no idea, like me, DJ81, CCF and Davies. However, is it your contention that regardless of what anyone does we can't sell enough in the US to make it worthwhile?

What have I said can’t be done? I’m sure we can attempt to sell shirts in US stores, what I’m saying is that there’s nowhere near enough people interested in buying them.

I’m not talking about any other plans, I’m talking specifically about selling shirts in US stores.

[Rileybobs]

300,000 global sales of land rovers per year.

We sell more tickets than that per season. Never mind global vieiwing figures.

Surely you’re not being serious with this comparison?

[GodIsADeeJay81]

We’re not talking about the global football fan market though are we. Comparing BFC with Land Rover just isn’t worthwhile.

I was using a retail set up as a template for what could be done by Burnley.
One that I already know works and does well.

You just refuse to see the relevance.

[Rileybobs]

https://www.uksoccershop.com/football-s ... ue/burnley

Uh oh, some of you aren't gonna be happy, our products can be purchased from around the world via this Web store.
I'd be interested to see their sales figures for our products tbh.

I don’t think anybody has rubbished the idea that our merchandise should be available to buy online. Charlie in New Mexico said he purchased a shirt from the club’s website and had it delivered to the US.

[Devils_Advocate]

300,000 global sales of land rovers per year.

We sell more tickets than that per season. Never mind global vieiwing figures.

Land Rover 2019 revenue £6 Billion
Burnley FC 2019 revenue £150 Million

[Rileybobs]

I was using a retail set up as a template for what could be done by Burnley.
One that I already know works and does well.

You just refuse to see the relevance.

I could use an example of how Man Utd sell shirts in overseas territories and that would have hardly none, but still more relevance than the Land Rover example.

[KateR]

What have I said can’t be done? I’m sure we can attempt to sell shirts in US stores, what I’m saying is that there’s nowhere near enough people interested in buying them.

I’m not talking about any other plans, I’m talking specifically about selling shirts in US stores.

so am I but I am clearly not getting my point across, again I will ask the same question, "is it BFC shirts can never be sold to enough people in the US today, or, is it they can never be enough people in the US interested in buying them, regardless of what BFC management do"?

If it's the latter then I don't agree with you, obviously the former we have an accord.

[cricketfieldclarets]

Surely you’re not being serious with this comparison?

Not entirely. Because the replies aren’t exactly serious.

But there’s an element of truth in it.

Perhaps viewing figures would be more relevant though. Given that’s more unique viewers / possible fans.

Anyway. As above. I’m out.

[cricketfieldclarets]

Land Rover 2019 revenue £6 Billion
Burnley FC 2019 revenue £150 Million

And losses of £4.6bn.

Revenue is for vanity. Profit for sanity.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

So we are back to the usual impasse.

Some fans can see the need to expand our fan base and to do it through methods the club hasn't used prior to the takeover.

Some fans can't see the need to expand the base, or believe it can be done and don't believe it can be done using new methods etc.

Until the next time then

[Rileybobs]

so am I but I am clearly not getting my point across, again I will ask the same question, "is it BFC shirts can never be sold to enough people in the US today, or, is it they can never be enough people in the US interested in buying them, regardless of what BFC management do"?

If it's the latter then I don't agree with you, obviously the former we have an accord.

You’re getting your point across but you’ve said that I’m being negative about the owner’s plans which just isn’t true, notably because I don’t know what their plans are.

In response to your question, I wouldn’t say that there categorically can never be enough people in the US interested in buying our merchandise from their stores. But I would say that the investment in time, money and effort would be much better placed elsewhere. The potential market is huge, but it’s ridiculously unlikely that we will ever have anywhere near the appeal for it to be significantly tapped into.

[Devils_Advocate]

And losses of £4.6bn.

Revenue is for vanity. Profit for sanity.

But we were talking about the size of the potential market. The fact Land Rover can still operate with those losses just shows how much of a different league it is in to us.

Still its a stupid comparison and has no baring on what our potential is but for Sid to use it as an example was a bit daft

[Devils_Advocate]

So we are back to the usual impasse.

Some fans can see the need to expand our fan base and to do it through methods the club hasn't used prior to the takeover.

Some fans can't see the need to expand the base, or believe it can be done and don't believe it can be done using new methods etc.

Until the next time then

If your argument is so good why do you have to so obviously distort the position of the other side when you lay out the different stanes?

[BurnleyFC]

The only comparison that can be drawn between Land Rover and Burnley FC is that some of our players drive them.

[BurnleyFC]

Oh, and they both carry the royal seal of approval (although I’m not sure that’s such a positive anymore...)

Land Rover - Liz and Phil
Burnley FC - Prince Charles

[Rileybobs]

So we are back to the usual impasse.

Some fans can see the need to expand our fan base and to do it through methods the club hasn't used prior to the takeover.

Some fans can't see the need to expand the base, or believe it can be done and don't believe it can be done using new methods etc.

Until the next time then

No, that’s not the case Sid and you know it. Just as CFC does when he suggests that some people think the club should do nothing.

I doubt anybody thinks that the club shouldn’t make efforts to expand its fan base, both locally and overseas. I also doubt anybody thinks the club shouldn’t be making efforts to improve its commercial performance in a number of areas. This isn’t a black and white issue - it’s just that there needs to be some realism as to what we can achieve, and therefore should pursue. And comparing our situation, even very loosely with Land Rover isn’t showing any realism.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

No, that’s not the case Sid and you know it. Just as CFC does when he suggests that some people think the club should do nothing.

I doubt anybody thinks that the club shouldn’t make efforts to expand its fan base, both locally and overseas. I also doubt anybody thinks the club shouldn’t be making efforts to improve its commercial performance in a number of areas. This isn’t a black and white issue - it’s just that there needs to be some realism as to what we can achieve, and therefore should pursue. And comparing our situation, even very loosely with Land Rover isn’t showing any realism.

I took a template that's proven to work and used it as an example.
I did exactly the same for a job interview at Mclaren many years ago, turns out it gave them a new idea they'd never considered before, just didn't get me the job

Anyway, we aren't gonna agree on much of this, no point pursuing it further on this thread, I'll wait until next time it pops up.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

But we were talking about the size of the potential market. The fact Land Rover can still operate with those losses just shows how much of a different league it is in to us.

Still its a stupid comparison and has no baring on what our potential is but for Sid to use it as an example was a bit daft

Company has product it wants to sell worldwide.
Company uses previous sales information to determine where the best locations would be to have local dealers for said products.
(in our case its also viewing figures)
Business deals are struck up with local dealers etc etc.

It wasn't daft, it's just a number of you seemingly can't understand what's required or how to implement these sorts of things, so you've all focused on me using Land Rover aftermarket products as a template in an effort to deflect.

That's normal for here though, because some people are still of the belief that it's Little old Burnley who no one's interested in and why should the club try to attract a larger fan base when the club will eventually get relegated blah blah blah

It's the "Local club for local people" mindset which is prevelant among many on here.

There are people on here who'll look around at other clubs and will be adamant they're bigger than Burnley, despite the fact they've been outside of the top flight for a decade or more and are showing no signs of returning.
They'll even have less trophies than Burnley but still they'll be viewed as bigger.

We have a history, we have stability, we have a manager who's admired and we have players who're coveted etc.
People have written whole articles fully explaining our defensive system, admiring how it works.
There was also an article about how we "recycle" the ball to our forwards a few years ago which explained what Hendrick did.
The Athletic churns out regular articles about us and that's an international sports website.

We just don't capitalise on those things, but some seem happy with that.

Then those same people will moan that the club isn't spending large amounts of money without seemingly grasping the simple principles of business - more incoming revenue means more can go out.

[Dyched]

Few posters have raised a few points on this thread.

NFL partnership? How many Burnley fans would suddenly take an interest in the NFL and buy the shirt of the team in the partnership? I’d say very, very few. So how would that work the other way round?

Over 300 million population? How many of those will seriously watch English Football? I know a lot will, but that figure is pretty irrelevant as a potential target audience.

Selling Burnley shirts in America? Really. Football is the most popular sport in England. Manchester has 2 of the biggest clubs in the country in a very football supporting city. How many shops in Manchester city centre sell shirts from clubs in European leagues? I don’t mean Barcelona, Real Madrid, PSG, Bayern Munich, Dortmund, Juventus. But all the other clubs those leagues. The idea of walking into a sport store in the United States and buying a Burnley shirt is quite laughable. I’d struggle finding a Dortmund shirt in New York or a Juventus one in Los Angeles. Both sport mad cities with big soccer clubs.

American football fans interested in English football will have their club. They’ll be attracted to it for the superstars, the top clubs, watching fast, attacking football. Clubs that win league titles and trophies. I get a few might, but there won’t be to much growth to have.

I believe American football will only get stronger and stronger over the next 5/10 years. We’re already starting to see players come through now into European football and making an impact. An area where we could potentially have growth if we gave a chance to a player who becomes a superstar. But even then it’d only be a short period until he goes and the gained fans go with him. How many South Korean fans would Tottenham have gained on Son? How many realistically would still have an interest when he leaves?

[CharlieinNewMexico]

There is some truly Neanderthal thinking on this thread with regard to current retail models. It’s not like you’re selling to the likes of Benn’s in the 70s and having to convince millions of stores to ‘buy’ your stuff and “it’ll all get marked down” that’s not how it works anymore. Two problems mentioned easily solved. 1) position a supply of merchandise in a distribution center in the US. Result: 2 day delivery, much reduced shipping fee, and actual tracking numbers. 2) have a line of our leisurewear made in a US factory That way people don’t have to convert the expensive British club shop price into US and then go “eff me, I’m not paying $40 + shipping for a tee shirt “ which is what it works out as now. There. Not hard is it.

[DCWat]

We can all agree that there are untapped markets. Being a part of the Premier League probably gives us a greater advantage than all but the bigger European teams outside of the Premier League.

What I’m not seeing here though (and I certainly don’t have the background to understand how it will be done) is a strategy to tap into any of these markets. America, China, India, South America, wherever it may be.

There are plenty of suggestions around local production hubs and sales outlets, but I don’t think I’ve read a single solution that proposes a strategy for creating the necessary demand.

We’re presumably near the back of many already on this path, so what is it that will help to drive this demand?

I’m sure it’s not the case, but if we’re hoping to get rich on the back of shirt sales (seems to be the main focus of recent posts), it’s not going to happen.

If our shirt sales rose to an implausible 500,000 at £50 a pop, we’d be only pulling in 1.75m at 7.5% commission. We may be able to negotiate a higher deal over the contract, and maybe a percentage increase in sales, but in the scheme of things, shirt sales would need to be just one of a number of commercial initiatives.

So, what else...... What is it that will not only drive demand for the Burnley product but also attract significant commercial investment / sponsorship, to levels that make Pace’ and others investment worthy of their time and money?

Btec in sales and marketing ain’t going to cut the mustard here.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

What's going to help generate interest in the club?

One way would be for the club to change where it goes on preseason tours.
Want to tap a new market, send the club there.

It's no coincidence that the bigger clubs regularly visit certain parts of the world on their preseason tours....
They'll be the places where there is massive interest in PL football.

[wilks_bfc]

https://www.uksoccershop.com/football-s ... ue/burnley

Uh oh, some of you aren't gonna be happy, our products can be purchased from around the world via this Web store.
I'd be interested to see their sales figures for our products tbh.

If they are selling last years kit at £54, then I’m guessing not good

[Rileybobs]

What's going to help generate interest in the club?

One way would be for the club to change where it goes on preseason tours.
Want to tap a new market, send the club there.

It's no coincidence that the bigger clubs regularly visit certain parts of the world on their preseason tours....
They'll be the places where there is massive interest in PL football.

There’s the comparison with biggest clubs again. Are you saying that if we send the team on a pre-season tour to the American mid-west we’d be able to tap into a new market? It’s just not realistic. People across the world are going to travel in numbers to watch Man Utd visit their country, and will buy a shirt with Pogba on the back.

Can you see the good old folk of Iowa turning out in large numbers to see the mighty clarets, buying a shirt with Lowton on the back and converting into Burnley fans?

There’s massive interest in the PL, but there’s not massive interest in Burnley. And there’s never likely to be. This is because most football fans with no connection to a club will choose to support a club because it has the best players, or the biggest history. We have neither and we never will have. A very small minority may choose to support a club for having a USP. We don’t have one.

[claretonthecoast1882]

https://www.uksoccershop.com/football-s ... ue/burnley

Uh oh, some of you aren't gonna be happy, our products can be purchased from around the world via this Web store.
I'd be interested to see their sales figures for our products tbh.

We should be huge then already around the world if our gear is available

[Dyched]

There’s the comparison with biggest clubs again. Are you saying that if we send the team on a pre-season tour to the American mid-west we’d be able to tap into a new market? It’s just not realistic. People across the world are going to travel in numbers to watch Man Utd visit their country, and will buy a shirt with Pogba on the back.

Can you see the good old folk of Iowa turning out in large numbers to see the mighty clarets, buying a shirt with Lowton on the back and converting into Burnley fans?

There’s massive interest in the PL, but there’s not massive interest in Burnley. And there’s never likely to be. This is because most football fans with no connection to a club will choose to support a club because it has the best players, or the biggest history. We have neither and we never will have. A very small minority may choose to support a club for having a USP. We don’t have one.

Absolutely. Many are in dreamland on this thread.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

There’s the comparison with biggest clubs again. Are you saying that if we send the team on a pre-season tour to the American mid-west we’d be able to tap into a new market? It’s just not realistic. People across the world are going to travel in numbers to watch Man Utd visit their country, and will buy a shirt with Pogba on the back.

Can you see the good old folk of Iowa turning out in large numbers to see the mighty clarets, buying a shirt with Lowton on the back and converting into Burnley fans?

There’s massive interest in the PL, but there’s not massive interest in Burnley. And there’s never likely to be. This is because most football fans with no connection to a club will choose to support a club because it has the best players, or the biggest history. We have neither and we never will have. A very small minority may choose to support a club for having a USP. We don’t have one.

On the back of the season when we finished 7th, we missed a golden opportunity to gain new international fans from a pre season tour.

We already have fans around the world, some actually make the effort to travel over here for games.
There must be a reason why we have people abroad choosing Burnley when they've no previous connection with the town or club....

Continue thinking small and talking the club down and that's all the club will ever be, small.
Make small steps every year to improve the clubs international brand and it will grow.

It would appear the new owners have the latter mindset thankfully.
They don't want the club to be just for local fans, or people with a real connection to the town.

[Dyched]

There is some truly Neanderthal thinking on this thread with regard to current retail models. It’s not like you’re selling to the likes of Benn’s in the 70s and having to convince millions of stores to ‘buy’ your stuff and “it’ll all get marked down” that’s not how it works anymore. Two problems mentioned easily solved. 1) position a supply of merchandise in a distribution center in the US. Result: 2 day delivery, much reduced shipping fee, and actual tracking numbers. 2) have a line of our leisurewear made in a US factory That way people don’t have to convert the expensive British club shop price into US and then go “eff me, I’m not paying $40 + shipping for a tee shirt “ which is what it works out as now. There. Not hard is it.

Start with an insult fine.
Work out the shirt selling strategy fine.
Work out the manufacturing of leisurewear fine.

So tell me. Who you gonna sell it to?

Also back to leisurewear or anything else related to the club shop. Tell me why we would set up manufacturing in America to sell stuff, when we can’t even get half decent stuff in the club shop at the Turf or for online sales.

I know all that stuff can be sorted with proper people in charge and actual communication with fans and what they want.

But before we start our quest to get the cowboys of New Mexico in Claret and Blue stetsons, let’s sort out the club shop with actual sellable stock first.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

Absolutely. Many are in dreamland on this thread.

Not really, some of us just take a different view, ie we don't just look within the borders of Pendle or Lancashire.

The number of Burnley fans who continue to see the club as smaller than many clubs of a similar or lesser stature is just bizarre.
It's almost like you don't want the club to grow in stature...

[GodIsADeeJay81]

Start with an insult fine.
Work out the shirt selling strategy fine.
Work out the manufacturing of leisurewear fine.

So tell me. Who you gonna sell it to?

Also back to leisurewear or anything else related to the club shop. Tell me why we would set up manufacturing in America to sell stuff, when we can’t even get half decent stuff in the club shop at the Turf or for online sales.

I know all that stuff can be sorted with proper people in charge and actual communication with fans and what they want.

But before we start our quest to get the cowboys of New Mexico in Claret and Blue stetsons, let’s sort out the club shop with actual sellable stock first.

They're taking steps to improve.
The club website has already changed.
Mr Fairclough has left.

Small steps, but that's how it starts.

[Winstonswhite]

It’s a simple reality that big name players generate interest in any club. You can stock as many shirts as you want worldwide but until we sign internationally recognisable stars, they ain’t going to sell.

[Rileybobs]

On the back of the season when we finished 7th, we missed a golden opportunity to gain new international fans from a pre season tour.

We already have fans around the world, some actually make the effort to travel over here for games.
There must be a reason why we have people abroad choosing Burnley when they've no previous connection with the town or club....

Continue thinking small and talking the club down and that's all the club will ever be, small.
Make small steps every year to improve the clubs international brand and it will grow.

It would appear the new owners have the latter mindset thankfully.
They don't want the club to be just for local fans, or people with a real connection to the town.

Why were we any different the season we finished 7th? Nobody cares about the team that finishes 7th.

Of course we have fans around the world. Nobody is denying that. We just have a very tiny number, and there’s a reason for that.

I’m not thinking small or talking the club down so I’ve got no idea why you’re taking an extreme view on this. Being realistic about our potential (or lack of) to be a big global brand is not thinking small. In the same way that it’s not small time thinking to suggest that a target to win the Premier League in 5 years is unrealistic.

Again, nobody has said that we can’t take steps to improve our international brand. And nobody, except yourself and CFC are referencing Burnley being a local club for local people. I don’t live locally to Burnley.

And when you say that the new owners have the latter mindset, what are you basing this on? Because I’ve not heard their plans for world domination (see,
I can make silly extreme claims too).

[Leisure]

They're taking steps to improve.
The club website has already changed.

What changes are these?

[NottsClaret]

This thread is entertaining, that's for sure. The Land Rover bit was genuinely brilliant.

Everyone is in agreement that the commercial operation can be improved. At one end of the spectrum, you've got people who think a smarter and smoother ticketing and retail system is a necessity.. and at the other folk who think there's a chance of making Burnley a sporting behemoth once we become a worldwide brand selling merchandise across the globe.

Either way, flogging shirts and car stickers to Americans is unlikely to adding huge numbers to the £120m we get from staying up every season. Or indeed make much dent in our new £8m debt repayments.

It's nice to think we could generate a second, more sustainable income beyond the cash cow of TV income, but unfortunately the moment you drop out of the big league, absolutely nobody cares what you're doing. You'll struggle to sell shirts in Hapton by that point. Your commercial department will be back to phoning local scaffolders to see if they want a risqué advertising board at pitch side. So just enjoy this moment in time, and indeed your dreams of global domination, but it's all over the moment you finish below 17th.

[Jakubclaret]

It’s a simple reality that big name players generate interest in any club. You can stock as many shirts as you want worldwide but until we sign internationally recognisable stars, they ain’t going to sell.

Sure as eggs that won’t be happening I think most sensible posters can work that out, as a club we just aren’t appealable on scale even nationwide never mind globally, the club is so held back with limitations that it can only ever go so far & that far is a million miles away from the likes of Manchester United & Chelsea however you market & modify the product.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

It’s a simple reality that big name players generate interest in any club. You can stock as many shirts as you want worldwide but until we sign internationally recognisable stars, they ain’t going to sell.

We had that the season we finished 7th when we had Defour pulling the strings from midfield, everyone knew who he was before he signed for us...

We've currently got one of the England keepers playing for us who was 2nd last season in the golden glove and is in with a great shout of becoming first choice.

We have the captain of New Zealand playing for us.

We've got players from Iceland and the Czech Rep.
We have a whole team of established PL players in one of the most marketed leagues in world sports.

We have players that can be used to promote the brand of Burnley, we just haven't been doing it.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

Sure as eggs that won’t be happening I think most sensible posters can work that out, as a club we just aren’t appealable on scale even nationwide never mind globally, the club is so held back with limitations that it can only ever go so far & that far is a million miles away from the likes of Manchester United & Chelsea however you market & modify the product.

Many of the limitations are of the clubs own creation, it's held itself back.
It needed new people in certain positions.

[Jakubclaret]

Many of the limitations are of the clubs own creation, it's held itself back.
It needed new people in certain positions.

I think it is what it is, the club can never compete commercially on any fronts with the heavyweights about, people outside of the area generally aren’t really interested in the club even not being bothered to know what our results & fixtures are before even buying any merchandise, the interest just isn’t there & I can’t see that ever changing.

[Winstonswhite]

OMG yes you’re right, we’ve got the captain of New Zealand playing for us. Apologies, I totally forgot about that when I said we need to sign internationally recognisable stars.

[Rileybobs]

OMG yes you’re right, we’ve got the captain of New Zealand playing for us. Apologies, I totally forgot about that when I said we need to sign internationally recognisable stars.

My sister in law's fella is a New Zealander, they're back living over here for a year. He'd never heard of Chris Wood

[GodIsADeeJay81]

I think it is what it is, the club can never compete commercially on any fronts with the heavyweights about, people outside of the area generally aren’t really interested in the club even not being bothered to know what our results & fixtures are before even buying any merchandise, the interest just isn’t there & I can’t see that ever changing.

Why did Fosun buy Wolves?
Why did anyone outside of the place buy Wigan?
Why do foreign people/businesses keep buying English clubs across the 4 tiers?
Why has that 24yr old purchased Sunderland?

Why did an American consortium buy Burnley?

There is worldwide interest in English football.

When we beat Liverpool at Anfield earlier in the season and ended their long unbeaten home run, do you think that generated interest in Burnley?
Of course it did, fans around the world wanted to know who we were and how did we beat Liverpool.
The same whenever we beat any of the top clubs.

Why do we have people on this forum who spend their time watching football leagues across the world?
It's because they're interested and some of them may grow an attachment to particular teams around the world.
We have people on here who have admitted they collect shirts from clubs around the world.

Many years ago when I was living in Burnley I did some chauffeuring work for a weekend for some Russian businessmen.
The only common interest we had was football, they supported CSKA Moscow, but were asking questions about Burnley and we had a really good chat about both clubs.

When I went to Poland a few years ago I stopped off to look at Legia Warsaw and Wisla Krakow grounds and club shops.

Football fans the world over take an interest in other leagues and clubs.

Leeds are viewed as one of the biggest clubs in England.
Why is that?
They're certainly not the most successful, they aren't even in the top 10 and only have 4 more trophies than us.
It's because the brand has been marketed extremely well for decades, pushing the narrative that they're massive.
They've also taken advantage of that narrative to massively grow their retail and sponsorship revenue these last few years.

West Ham have never won the top flight, yet they're viewed as a bigger club and marketed as such, but they've only won 6 major trophies.

Saints have 1 and there will be people on here who'll say they're a bigger club than us

[GodIsADeeJay81]

My sister in law's fella is a New Zealander, they're back living over here for a year. He'd never heard of Chris Wood

Is he a football fan or a rugby fan?
Rugby is bigger over there let's not forget.

[aggi]

The global football fan market has the potential to be far larger than any Land Rover market will ever be.

Interestingly I've just popped onto the clarets store and I've noticed it's been upgraded since I last looked prior to Xmas.

Obviously you're comparing apples with oranges there. If you're looking at the global football fan market you should be comparing it to the global automotive industry.

[Rileybobs]

Is he a football fan or a rugby fan?
Rugby is bigger over there let's not forget.

He's a rugby fan, like the huge majority of New Zealanders, that's my point. Having New Zealand's best player doesn't really provide such a big marketing opportunity. I've just checked his twitter account and you could fit all of his followers inside Old Trafford.

[Jakubclaret]

Why did Fosun buy Wolves?
Why did anyone outside of the place buy Wigan?
Why do foreign people/businesses keep buying English clubs across the 4 tiers?
Why has that 24yr old purchased Sunderland?

Why did an American consortium buy Burnley?

There is worldwide interest in English football.

When we beat Liverpool at Anfield earlier in the season and ended their long unbeaten home run, do you think that generated interest in Burnley?
Of course it did, fans around the world wanted to know who we were and how did we beat Liverpool.
The same whenever we beat any of the top clubs.

Why do we have people on this forum who spend their time watching football leagues across the world?
It's because they're interested and some of them may grow an attachment to particular teams around the world.
We have people on here who have admitted they collect shirts from clubs around the world.

Many years ago when I was living in Burnley I did some chauffeuring work for a weekend for some Russian businessmen.
The only common interest we had was football, they supported CSKA Moscow, but were asking questions about Burnley and we had a really good chat about both clubs.

When I went to Poland a few years ago I stopped off to look at Legia Warsaw and Wisla Krakow grounds and club shops.

Football fans the world over take an interest in other leagues and clubs.

Leeds are viewed as one of the biggest clubs in England.
Why is that?
They're certainly not the most successful, they aren't even in the top 10 and only have 4 more trophies than us.
It's because the brand has been marketed extremely well for decades, pushing the narrative that they're massive.
They've also taken advantage of that narrative to massively grow their retail and sponsorship revenue these last few years.

West Ham have never won the top flight, yet they're viewed as a bigger club and marketed as such, but they've only won 6 major trophies.

Saints have 1 and there will be people on here who'll say they're a bigger club than us

Fosun have a massive portfolio they own silvercross as well as other concerns, I’m far too busy to answer 6 questions in detail, Ellis short did nothing with Sunderland apart from spunk money so it’ll be interesting to see how the 24yr old gets on, I think palace are partly owned by the Americans so I’m not sure if there are selling merchandise in America I suspect many Americans won’t be interested in them the same as us, investors usually weigh in a few Bob with a view to a monetary return, first & foremost, I don’t think commercially on any sort of meaningful scale outside of the area massive opportunities are ever going to exist for the benefit of the club, maybe I’m right or maybe I’m wrong, time will tell have a good day.