Tottenham Hotspur executives used their appearance at the opening of Nasdaq to push VIP ticketing packages for their new stadium among US sports fans.
Tony Davison, head of commercial at the Premier League club, said interest in Tottenham in the US is “immense”, adding that many companies and individuals have already signed up for premium seats.
Chairman Daniel Levy was among those to visit Nasdaq during the club’s North American pre-season tour, with the appearance covered by four networks and the financial news channels.
Tottenham is building its presence in the North American market, with the club’s new 61,000-seat stadium set to host at least two National Football League (NFL) fixtures in each of the next 10 years.
The plan is for existing NFL teams to play at the stadium on an ad-hoc basis, but NFL UK managing director Alistair Kirkwood has suggested a permanent franchise based in London is not out of the question.
“I wouldn’t rule anything out,” Kirkwood told SportBusiness International website. “That is the beauty of what we’re doing. There’s nothing quite like it elsewhere in the world.”
Tottenham have been making the most of cross promotion with their NFL partners, but Antony Marcou, chief executive of media and rights firm Sports Revolution, told SportBusiness International that Spurs must be careful not to repel their existing English fans by enticing new support from North America.
“They’ve been using social media, with NFL players in Spurs shirts and so on. North America has always been a strong spot for Spurs – they’ll look to build on that and you can only see it working,” Marcou said.
“The stadium will be broadcast on TV in the States and the venue will become a household name. When young Americans are choosing a soccer team, Spurs will be high on the list.”
He added: “If they want to grow their fanbase in the US, then continue the work on social media, but be careful how visible it is in the UK.
“There is a common criticism from football fans about the commercialisation of the game. Spurs has been a ‘real’ club over the years, so they need to be careful.”
IMAGES: Tottenham Hotspur
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