Samuel Eto’o might be turning them down, but the Manchester City machine is moving into overdrive in their quest for world domination.
Not only have the club sold in excess of 30,000 season tickets ahead of the new campaign, but they are also linking up with Big Brother experts Endemol to increase their global profile.
I can’t quite imagine Mark Hughes entering the diary room to give his thoughts on
Roque Santa Cruz or
Stephen Ireland, but there is no doubt that
City mean business.
And the acquisition of both Cruz and
Gareth Barry is convincing supporters that a long-term challenge to their bitter rivals from across the city might finally be a possibility.
Since a takeover by the Abu Dhabi United Group there has been a growing expectation amongst City supporters that has shown in the take up of season tickets.
Chief executive Garry Cook told mcfc.co.uk: "We've always known that City fans are passionate and unswerving in their support for the club.
"The impressive take-up of Seasoncards already shown simply underlines that loyalty."
However, whilst players are arriving on the pitch and local support is coming out en masse, for a club with lofty ambitions like Manchester City then a stake in the global market is a pre-requisite.
Endemol Sport was launched last year and their ‘multi-year’ deal with City will relaunch its website and develop TV ideas and its brand throughout the world. There will be a big push in the Middle East with the website being made available in both English and Arabic.
Gregg Oldfield, joint managing director at Endemol Sport, said it would be built around social media elements and focused at targeting under-25s who were fans of Premier League football but were yet to decide whom to support.
"The Middle East is very important for obvious reasons and we'll also target Asia and Latin America," said Oldfield.
"At the top of the list is providing a positive experience to existing fans,” he said.
“The second priority is to create a point of entry into Manchester City and what it stands for. We want to target certain markets, first in Arabic and English and by the end of the year in three or four other languages.”
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