sport news Manchester City reach out to global fans with just one per cent in the UK trends now

Arguments over 'plastic fans' have raged for years in English football, but the condition may be more extensive than we ever thought.

Purists saw a problem way back in the 1970s, when the success of Leeds United led to the Yorkshire club's plain white shirts – and iconic yellow away tops - popping up all over, even in Lancashire.

But with an explosion of football on TV following the introduction of the Premier League in 1992, 'plastics' – people who support a team they have no obvious affinity with – have become a phenomenon.

However, forget domestic disputes over Chelsea fans who live in the West Country or Manchester United supporters who have never left Basingstoke; they are now positively local compared to the overwhelming majority of the wealthiest clubs' support.

Marketing executives at Manchester City have revealed that only one per cent of the club's fan base even lives in the UK, let alone in Manchester.

Social media and digital platforms are driving extraordinary growth in worldwide 'fandom' and while the global nature of City's following is well known, the sheer extent of the overseas support is startling.

Only a miniscule percentage of those who now call themselves a Blue will ever make it to the Etihad, or even to Great Britain. 

As a result, City's marketing team are trialling new ways of entertaining them, and tying them in, including following match-going fans, so those overseas can share vicariously in the experience of being a Cityzen.

'Our response from a club perspective is to cater for all fans and that is why [we have to understand] what they expect and how they want to engage with the club,' said Chief Marketing Officer of the City Football Group, Nuria Tarre.

'At Manchester City we know that one per cent of our audience is in the UK,' added Tarre, in a discussion at the Business of Football summit, organised by the Financial Times earlier this year.

'Those who dream about going to the Etihad one day may have the opportunity to engage with the club in a way that makes them feel closer to the experience, makes them feel immersed as to what it feels to be in a stadium full of fans….

'We are experimenting… fans in US and China are interested in the day-to-day of fans going to Manchester to the games.'

Manchester City are taunted by supporters of other clubs for having a plastic fanbase, an accusation reinforced by memes from online wags, who love to show vacant seats at the 'Emptihad'.

Inevitably, City has attracted a lot of new supporters following the rapid injection of cash as a result of the club's takeover by Sheikh Mansour in 2008. The recruitment of star players, incredible success and sumptuous football under Pep Guardiola has fuelled extraordinary growth.

City have just won their fourth Premier League title in five seasons as Guardiola builds a dynasty of success. 

Chelsea faced similar accusations after the arrival of Roman Abramovich and his riches in 2003, which transformed the fortunes of the club in every sense. 

But after Leeds, the 'plastic originals' were distant followers of Liverpool and Manchester United, after their successes of the 1970s and 80s, and the 2000s, respectively.

The truth is every top-flight club aspires to increase its reach, both in their own community and globally, through digital platforms.

City is now pumping out online features in 14 languages, and not just translations of the material it produces for an English audience.

The club creates content in those overseas markets that is relevant to people from that country or region, for example a focus on particular players.

To support the global communications, City have located some in-house journalists within the first-team facilities, to provide a regular supply of material.

All of this reflects the fact that a club's 'audience' is now a key element in its overall value and its ability to make money.

The accountant, KPMG, include popularity on social media within its annual valuation of clubs, along with profitability, broadcast revenues, stadium ownership and sporting potential.

Manchester City's social media audience is put at around 90 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube in the yearly rankings published by Deloitte. 

That figure is comparable to those for Chelsea and Liverpool, but lagging far behind Manchester United, which boasts almost double that number.

Total Social Media Following by Club 2022 

The challenge is, how to monetise the new audience?

To start with, digital reach increases the value of traditional commercial

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