Tottenham’s Increasing Connections in America

As Tottenham’s second pre-season tour to America in two years draws to a close in New York this evening with a match against Red Bulls, the club are developing an impressive contacts list in the United States. The 2010 tour had been their first major tour to the US since the late 1950s. There had been individual exhibition matches played in the intervening years and some contacts made with US clubs when young players went out on loan Stateside or senior players opted to end their careers in the in the early days of football in America.

Under Armour

In March, 2011, Under Armour and Tottenham Hotspur announced a five-year global partnership agreement and technical sponsorship to commence at the beginning of season 2012-13. Under Armour is the U.S.-based leader in performance apparel, footwear, and accessories and it is their first kit supply agreement with a Barclays Premier League team. It represents the Brand’s largest European team sponsorship and in early July the club’s new kit was successfully unveiled by Under Armour.

EA SPORTS

Prior to leaving on the US tour Tottenham announced that they had agreed to a three-year partnership Electronic Arts Inc. that will make EA SPORTS their Official Video Game Partner. Spurs join seven other English Premier League teams that have become club partners with EA SPORTS. The other club partners are Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Fulham, Newcastle, and Manchester City. Speaking of the partnership, Tottenham Chairman, Daniel Levy said,

"“Over the course of the past few years we’ve seen the international profile of the Club rise significantly, especially across key markets in Asia and North America.”"

During their time in New York, the club will be carrying out promotional work with EA SPORTS who will be conducting 3D head scans of the Tottenham players at Vanderbilt Hall in Grand Central Station. This will enable the FIFA development team to capture high-quality and authentic 3D digital player models for future versions of the FIFA videogame.

Olympic Stadium Bid

As part of Tottenham’s drive to secure a new stadium the club submitted a proposal with AEG, the American operator of the O2 Arena, for the Olympic Stadium in 2010. It was a detailed, workable and financially viable proposal which would have rebuilt the stadium, without an athletics track, to make it more suitable for football. In the end the opposition to demolishing the newly built stadium and the athletics issue were too great and the proposal was turned down so Tottenham are now concentrating on the Northumberland Development Project which has started to make progress with the development of the Sainsbury’s supermarket due to start soon. Tottenham had worked very closely with AEG on the failed Olympic stadium bid and that may lead to further negotiations in the future.

San Jose Earthquakes

With the global popularity of Premier League football Spurs have in the past number of years been trying to increase the profile and standing of Tottenham Hotspur. In 2010 their tour to the States included a match with San Jose Earthquakes. Previously, Spurs had formed a partnership which focused on football and commercial development to implement a best practice exchange programme, with the objective of creating a lasting bond between the two clubs. This would involve Spurs in the investment of time and resources into the development of San Jose Earthquakes on and off the pitch as well as working across charity and community based initiatives. The agreement was reached in 2008 and the MLS players and staff have been in England to take advantage of Tottenham’s training facilities at Spurs Lodge and to play a number of matches. During their time in San Jose in 2010 Spurs coaching staff were involved with sessions at the club. Tottenham’s opening preseason match with San Jose in July, 201 ended in a scoreless draw.

Another aspect of the link between the club has been the loan of Simon Dawkins to the Earthquakes over the past two seasons. Dawkins is a young midfield player/striker who was released by Spurs but then given a contract after training with the club following an injury. He then went on loan to the Earthquakes and has been played regularly for the MLS team with 44 appearances and nine goals.

Players

Tottenham have only had two US players on their books and both have been goalkeepers – Kasey Keller and now Brad Friedel. Keller joined Spurs in August, 2001 and made 85 Premier League appearances before signing for Borussia Monchengladbach on a free transfer in January, 2005. He had previously played in England for Millwall and Leicester City and won 101 caps for America.

Brad Friedel was signed last summer from Aston Villa on a free transfer. He was an ever present in the Premier League last season and holds the Premier League record for most consecutive appearances with 304, stretching back to the opening day of season 2004 and eight seasons with Blackburn Rovers, Villa and Tottenham. At 41 years of age Friedel is also the oldest player to have played for Tottenham in a competitive match. He has also played in 82 internationals for the United States.

Like all Premier League clubs, Tottenham are endeavouring to widen their fan base around the world. For Tottenham, this summer’s natural focus was in America where they are developing strong business connections with companies in that country. They are also trying to reach out to new and existing fans who view their Premier League football on the television and internet across the Atlantic. Each promotional event is only a small step in this process to which Tottenham Hotspur were late entrants compared to Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool. Tottenham are doing their best to take advantage of their raised profile due to their strengthening position in the Premier League.

• Have you had the opportunity to attend any of these events during the past ten days – I’d love to hear about your experiences and thoughts on Spurs. Let me know in the comments box or on Twitter @HotspurHQ