http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/sa...uthampton_s_support_around_the_world/?ref=mac An interactive map of PL supporters around the world broken down by club and based on twitter activity (so not actual figures). Shows the amount of work that Kreuger has to do...although we do have fans worldwide. Quality not quantity.
I am slowly gathering Saints fans in NY and Atlanta. Ever since we have returned to the Premier League my work colleagues and friends know I am a Saints fan and now they have all started to watch our games on NBC sports on Sat/Sun mornings. The problem now is that I used to be able to record the game without fear of knowing the score until I watched the game, now I have to watch what texts I get on my phone telling me how well we played or what a bad result for the Saints. They tell me its refreshing following a team other than Man U, Chelsea or Liverpool like 95% of the rest of the Premier supporters in the US.
Tried to recruit my niece. She quite enjoyed when players went flying into tackles, and reveled in pointing at the screen and saying "baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaalllllll". Unfortunately, her interest in football and consequently her time as a Saints supporter ended around her second birthday.
We appear to have some very keen supports in Canada, US and especially Aussieland. Anyone on Facebook who hasn't befriended these guys please do so as we need to increase our fan base. Some good banter to be had too
I'm trying to set a strong foothold here in Croatia, but it's proving to be a difficult task. Nevertheless, I'm not giving up.
Same in Dubai, having said that, so many expats have alot of respect for us here; although the +4 fans say we will fade and when l ask why; no intelligent answer.. expats... say no more.
Having read the report Saints should aim to make themselves the best supported team in Hampshire. Lets get kids in Fareham, Tttchfield , and in the New Forest towns making SFC their number one team. Somehow the clubs needs to find someone as charismatic as Le Tissier for that to happen.
This is the problem with having a small ground....we can't do special offers to get the kids in. Look at what West Ham have planned in their new ground...those super cheap season tickets will attract youngsters away from other clubs nearby (who will really suffer).
There is a logic here, but since when was football following as rational as choosing your supermarket? I am not convinced it is about price sensitivity - albeit I'd like to see us do more offers for kids. Being successful brings a world following as teams are seen to win things. This really struck me when I was in Thailand at the time when Man City won their long awaited title. Suddenly Man City "genuine" shirts appeared to compete with the Man U and Chelsea variety on the market stalls. When I was in Bangkok, I tried to buy a Thai footie shirt in a sports shop, but could only be offered genuine (really) top English, German, Spanish or Italian club shirts. We idiots who are loyal to a club through thick and thin (and bloody thin if you support Port Vale and the like) are in a minority. There are a lot of glory hunters out there looking for a bandwagon to hop on. They're the buggers we need - and only by winning something will we get them.
On my travels I've met Saints fans in Korea, China, and Fuerteventura. So that's three in about 8~9 years or so, in 20+ different countries. Met some nice Pompey lads in Vietnam once. Haven't met a Bournemouth fan in my whole entire life. And I've been to Bournemouth a fair, few times.
Exactly my reasoning behind a SMS expansion. For the less well supported visiting teams we could offer cheap/free tickets to youngsters from all round the catchment area. That's how I came to be a Saints fans back in 1968 when my school got free tickets to a reserves game and off we went in the coach. The average of of our fans is far too old and we need to bring in the young generation before the Manure, Arsenal, Chelsea etc marketing machines grab them
