We were interested to read recently that football fans are more loyal than married couples, and true fans change their team less than they do their wives or husbands. Although in truth after pondering it for a while it makes senses that this would be the case.
Equally amazing was the fact that a recent survey has estimated that Manchester United has 659 million fans out of 1.6 billion football followers around the world, and that is of course not based on the countries that could not be surveyed.
The survey included 39 football nations and was based on 54,000 responses. According to the survey Manchester United have 325 million fans in Asia, twice as many as Barcelona in the region according to research company Kantar.
They have 173 million fans in Africa and the Middle East, this result is surprising as having travelled extensively through Africa most fans support European sides or teams from London who have more Africa players in their sides.
They also claim to have 90 million in Europe, 71 million in the Americas and 34 million in the United States of America.
To add to their status Manchester United were also recently ranked football’s most valuable club at US2.24billion for an eighth year in a row by Forbes magazine.
All we can say to the 659 million fans around the word from all those who support other clubs is now you know how most of us feel every year when we don’t win anything! Although this writer is chuffed that Swindon Town did actually win something this year while Manchester United didn’t!
How many of those 659million have actually been to watch a Man U game live? Amazing stats but most are fair-weather fans.