Manchester United are in the midst of their summer tour in the United States. For the Red Devils, just as it is for all the Premier League teams out across the pond playing exhibition games, it’s all about the money. Yes, they get to work on their fitness for the upcoming season, evaluate players, try new formations and strategies, and certainly try to find a comfort zone and work the kinks out.
But this is really about revenue streams plain and simple. I don’t mean just for MUFC, but for all the teams out on tour in America: Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur etc.
And they get to do some really exciting things away from the pitch: like drive Camaros and Corvettes in Beverly Hills, (and look bored while doing it). Or see the name of their home stadium misspelled on a giant stadium scoreboard for over an hour. Okay, those things may not be all that exciting, but this is. Manchester United, the most powerful sports brand and valuable sports club in the world….visited the White House, home of the most powerful man in the world and leader of the world’s richest nation.
Manchester United @ the White House in Washington D.C. pic.twitter.com/QWIsuJZk77
— Manchester United NL (@MUFC_NL) July 31, 2014
Manchester United is taking in the president’s arrival at the White House this afternoon pic.twitter.com/bc96ciRJYa — Adam Aigner-Treworgy (@AdamATCBS) July 30, 2014
.@manutd in the White House’s Blue Room pic.twitter.com/hOZDEY0iSi
— James Barbour (@jamesbarbour) July 30, 2014
Here’s the results so far, and schedule of the Manchester United summer tour.
Manchester United July 24 v LA Galaxy (Won 7-0) July 26 v Roma (Won 3-2) July 30 v Inter Milan (0-0, Won 5-3 on PK) August 2 v Real Madrid August 12 v Valencia (First match for Louis van Gaal at Old Trafford)
United, then led by Sir Alex Ferguson, also visited the residence of the United States President in 2011. Here’s a re-post, of the photo from back then.
Photo: White House 2011. (repost from @aon_football) #ManchesterUnited #ManUnited #ManUtd #MUFC #WhiteHouse… https://t.co/Mgqz3FcXHj — Jonny Evans FANS (@JonnyEvansFans) July 31, 2014
Paul M. Banks owns The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports and Yahoo! He’s been a guest on news talk shows all across the world. He’s also a special contributor to the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. Banks has been featured in numerous media outlets including NFL.com, Forbes, Bleacher Report, Deadspin, ESPN, NBC, CBS, the History Channel and more. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)