KUALA LUMPUR: When it comes football in this region - South-East Asia - the EPL brand just dwarfs the rest of the top leagues. In this region, the English Premier League and its players are spoken in just about every nook and corner of the countries in this region.
Call it in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and just anywhere not only in South-East Asia but also overall in Asia - EPL is just about the biggest thing from India to China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and even the Middle East.
Hence the craze the Saudi League and its big bucks waiting for those players who had graced the EPL.
So much so the craze of EPL, fans are just no longer surprised to see banks and banks of Tottenham fans in Hong Kong wearing their Lilywhite replica shirts and singing “Ossie’s Dream” just as they would on the Shelf at White Hart Lane; Liverpool fans in Jakarta know all the words, all the harmonies and even the nuances within the nuances of “You’ll Never Walk Alone”? and Manchester United fans in Singapore and Malaysia singing 'Glory, Glory, Man Utd', more passionately than English fans themselves.
During a press conference for the Battle of the Reds match between Liverpool Legends and Manchester United Legends, the Project Director of the event said support for English football has always been nothing short of amazing in this part of the world.
"Many Malaysians just love English teams, especially Liverpool and Manchester United. We are not born in England and many of us have never even been there, but when its love for football it comes with the English teams," said Azman Fahmi, Executive Project Director of Battle of the Reds and AllStar Sport.
"Many will not be get excited by getting local team jerseys, but I can assure you, when it comes football, they all want Man Utd and Liverpool jerseys."
There are two key reasons why the English game has found such favour among Asian markets. Initially, it is a case of timing, and secondly, it is the intrinsic value of the product.
It is a relationship that Japan Today had once described as “decades in the making” and the site suggests that British football is so popular primarily because it was the first European soccer to be broadcast regularly in Asia.
Before Europe’s other leagues had even begun to think about expanding their exposure to markets beyond the local, ITV and BBC were already selling the English game and broadcasting British football in Asia.
Thus, the Premier League was the first major European division to truly be seen by the Asian public and subsequently left a historical imprint on the public.
Secondly, the nature of English top-flight contests have appealed to the casual sports fan. While some of Europe’s other leagues may come across as staid, clinical or dispassionate, the British game has built its reputation upon the furious, dramatic and exciting contests that furnish its league.
It is a product almost perfectly designed for consummation, appreciation and the subsequent retention of interest and support.
The strong fascination with the Premier League, as depicted above, goes far beyond the league's native borders and stretches across the globe.
Within this global enchantment for the league, there are few places in the world which can rival South-East Asia.
In fact, it is one of the regions which has the most fans, with BBC reporting that half of the league’s global fanbase is in the Asia-Pacific region (2022), with 56% of football supporters in the South East Asian market being fans of the Premier League (GWI, 2023).
Despite the nearest Premier League stadium being over 9,000 km (5,600 miles) away from the closest South-East Asian country, Myanmar, and the region not having a single player playing in the Premier League, fans can’t get enough of the league.
This strong fan culture saw the Premier League’s total cumulative audience for the region reach 386 million during the 2021/22 season, with stand out fixtures like Manchester City vs Liverpool seeing 3.5 million viewers (Nielsen).
And even the the football administrators will not deny the fact of the power of EPL in South-East Asia. The immense and passionate following of fans in this region has helped to push EPL to be a such a powerful brand that sponsors are willing to pay billions to be part of the set-up.
Football fans have seen their high level of engagement rewarded with extensive broadcasting coverage in the region, with countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam broadcasting all 380 Premier League games in a season (Nielsen, 2022).
The extensive coverage has seen the total cumulative TV audience continue to rise, with the 2021/22 season seeing a 31% increase compared to the 2020/21 season.
This continued growth from Premier League fans in the region is particularly impressive considering that most games are broadcasted in the middle of the night - a true testament to the fans’ high level of engagement and commitment to the world’s biggest league.
And in any business sense, it is the very reason that even EPL the body does all it can to ensure that its brand stay on top of the heap with various events and activities that always enthrall the fans and top teams always playing exhibition matches in this part of the world.
Recognising the importance of a global fan base, the Premier League has long been investing in its fans in South-East Asia.
In 2003, the league formed the Premier League Asia Trophy, a biennial pre-season tournament created to give back to the hundreds of millions of fans in Asia.
The first edition was held in one of South East Asia’s biggest Premier League fan hubs, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Subsequent tournaments have seen other countries in the region host matches, with fans from both Thailand and Singapore treated to entertaining fixtures in 2005 and 2015, respectively. And so on with such events.
As such, while the Battle of the Reds match on Saturday (April 27) is not directly part of EPL, their players were very much part of the English game and thus the incredible support fans have for the former superstars that will play in the match.
According to the organisers, the match between Liverpool and Manchester United former stars, has already attracted over 25,000 fans who have bought tickets. They expect the numbers to hit at least 30,000 tickets sold by Saturday night.
On a Saturday when the EPL matches are being played live on TV, that number is indeed impressive.
And the power of such event which features EPL players, current or former, will continue to soar said the former superstars of the game who are in KL now.
Some of the players who have arrived - the likes of Teddy Sheringham, Dwight Yorke, David James and Steve McManaman - are super big names especially for local football fans and more so United and Liverpool fans.
And it was not easy for the players to come here too. Some were stuck in Dubai for more than 10 hours, no thanks to the flash flood the city had to endure. And other were also had to endure long flights elsewhere on their way.
To top all that, as the players made their way to the hotel in KL from KLIA, they themselves had to go through another long delay due to the flash flood, KL had to go through on Wednesday evening.
But kudos to all the players. Tired they were but all were still on their jovial best and all of them were always obliging to the fans who were there to meet them. Autographs, pictures and selfies - all was never a problem for any them and ever obliging they were despite the long day.
Quinton Fortune, South Africa's best known footballer who graced the EPL, said unlike any other leagues in the world, the EPL provides so much drama and twist and turn, that other top leagues just cannot match.
"Not only South-East Asia, even football fans in my country are just crazy about EPL. I think we have more live telecast matches here than in England itself," said Fortune.
"Also there is a friendly nature of the English game itself. Passionate fans and the love for their players - the players in the English game are perfect for the game. We try our best to as friendly as we can with the fans. That really helps push the EPL image," he said.
Former England No. 1 James said it is fair to say the EPL also has most of the best players in the game now.
"Just look at the players in EPL this season, So many superstars and blessed is the English game with them. I know they are many other top leagues in the world, but on average I believe EPL has the best stars.
"And there never has been a season where the winners go through a runaway train to the title. Just check out the title fight this season. At one time, there were six teams in the running. How many other leagues can offer such thrill ..."
Manchester super striker and former England star Sheringham also agreed.
"The league just keep getting better. Check out the number of World Cup stars in the league. Too bad United is having a bit of bad run in terms of success, but overall the thrills and spills in EPL is unmatchable," he said.
Meanwhile, Yorke and Liverpool legend John Arne Riise promised fans they will put up a show that will enthrall the fans.
"Our legs may not be what they used to be but I can assure you the quality on the pitch on game day (on Saturday) is among the very best in the world," said Yorke.
The Manchester Reds line-up features Dwight Yorke as the manager for David May, Wes Brown, Clayton Blackmore, Keith Gillespie, Ben Thornley, Eric Djemba Djemba, Paul Rachubka, Russell Beardsmore, Lee Martin, Danny Webber, Mikael Silvestre, Quinton Fortune, Dimitar Berbatov, Erik Nevland, and Dion Dublin, with Sheringham leading as captain.
For the Liverpool Reds, manager James leads players Emile Heskey, Glen Johnson, John Arne Riise, Patrik Berger, Vladimir Smicer, McManaman, Jason McAteer, Florent Sinama, John Durnin, David Thompson, Jermaine Pennant, Djibril Cisse, and Phil Babb, with Luis Garcia as captain.
AllStar Sports Sdn Bhd (AllStar Sports) in collaboration with World Football Legends (WFL) and ACO Media unveiled the official players’ lineup featuring iconic legends from Manchester Reds and Liverpool Reds, along with the championship trophy at the press conference.
‘Battle of the Reds’ is supported by the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Perbandanan Stadium Malaysia (PSM) and Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).
The ‘Battle of the Reds’ exhibition match is scheduled to be held at the National Stadium Bukit Jalil on 27 th April 2024 at 8.45pm. Limited tickets are still available for purchase at https://www.ticket2u.com.my/event/34323/battle-of-the-reds
As for the fans as promised by the players, get set for an exciting match that will provide plenty of excitement, thrill and spills - and goals many many goals from ace players.
No surprises there, really. They are from brand EPL or were from there. The brand that has never failed to deliver since it began in 1992.
Just as a note - when Chelsea played to an amazing 4-4 draw against Manchester City last November; Blues manager Mauricio Pochettino said: "That's why we say Premier League is best in the world. I'm so proud to be here."
That sums up the EPL. Expect these former stars from that league to give you a match to remember in Bukit Jalil Stadium on Saturday.
