Manchester United's David Gill has been talking about the Red Devil's popularity in Asia, hinting that the market will always more important than the US soccer market. The Reds claim to have over 75 million fans world-wide, and according to 'research' over half the population of South Korea support Manchester United.
The Reds are currently on tour in Asia, in their most recent game they thumped FC Seoul by four goals to nil, with Ronaldo, Eagles, Rooney and Evra on target for for the visitors.
However, longstanding United fans have heard all the marketing nonsense before about these Asian markets, because it is one thing filling a few grounds to capacity while on a summer tour, quite another turning these 'supporters' into die-hards like those home based fans who've followed the club through thick and thin.
The club will no doubt he hoping that one day they can cash-in when viewing live Premier League matches over the internet becomes the norm. Until such times arrive then these supporters from afar might as well be from another galaxy for what real worth they are to clubs like United, Chelsea and Liverpool.
In today's cold hard business climate, the only fans who really matter are those who are prepared to pay the often sky high prices for match tickets, tv subscriptions and official merchandise.
Things are getting so bad regarding the latest season ticket price increases that some schools of thought suggest that the Red Devils might not be sold out every home game this coming season, as it's thought that several thousand fans may have had to give up their season tickets because they can no longer afford it.
We shall see how many fans United really have then.
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