Manchester United taps Thai fan base, business links

“Thailand is a hugely important part of our fan base. There are more than 20 million fans in Thailand and over 17 million viewers watching our games this year,” Richard Arnold, managing director at Manchester United Group, told The Nation last week during Manchester United’s pre-season tour in Bangkok, celebrating Singha Beer’s 80th anniversary. 

The pre-season tour of Bangkok, Sydney, Yokohama, Osaka and Hong Kong is not only a part of team preparation for next season but also a key strategy to engage with these fans, Richard added. 

This 2013 Summer tour is presented by Aon under its eight-year partnership agreement with Manchester United. 

Apart from soccer-oriented activities, Andrew C Bentley, chief executive officer at Aon Thailand, said that through the next eight years, his company and Manchester United would focus on creating a global dialogue, business network and knowledge sharing around the fields of talent, healthcare, risk management, retirement, and data and analytics. 

Under this partnership, Aon is also helping the 135-year-heritage football club polish its business performance.

To get more engaged with the community of Man U fans across the globe and drive business, the group is also focusing on sealing a sponsorship with local companies in each market, Arnold said.

He pointed to a regional partnership with True Corporation sealed early this month. Under this three-year agreement, the True Group teams up with Manchester United in many different areas. For example, TrueMove H becomes Manchester United’s official mobile partner for Thailand; and TrueVisions, True Group’s pay TV operator, is the official MUTV broadcaster for Thailand.

The finance sector of Manchester United had introduced an FC credit card for fans. 

Last week, it joined forces with Bank of Ayudhya to provide fans in Thailand the opportunity to apply for a Man United debit card and a Man United credit card. Thai customers can have a chance to win prizes each time they use the card – including the opportunity to watch a match at Old Trafford – and get merchandise and special discounts. 

According to third-quarter financial results for Manchester United Group released in March, three primary sectors including commercial, broadcasting and match day delivered strong top-line gains. Sponsorship revenue increased 52.2 per cent to 21.0 million British pounds; retail, merchandising, apparel and product licensing increased 9.5 per cent to 9.2 million pounds; and new media and mobile increased 13.7 per cent to 5.8 million pounds. Meanwhile, broadcasting revenue for the third quarter increased 28.4 per cent year on year to 21.7 million pounds. 

For fiscal 2013, the group expects to see Bt360 million pounds in revenue.