How Man City cracked America: Ted Lasso, WWE and trophies galore and Pep Guardiola

City are one of 10 Premier League clubs touring the U.S. this summer, including rivals Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United. Those clubs put down roots in America long ago, enjoying a big head start on City, who only won their first Premier League title in 2012. However, thanks to a concerted strategy and homing in on what makes U.S. fans tick, City have played catch-up and raced to the front of the queue, attracting legions of new supporters.

Their timing could hardly be better as soccer is enjoying its latest boom in the States. Lionel Messi’s signing for Inter Miami in 2023 turbo-charged the sport’s popularity and this summer the Copa America came to the States, with Messi and Argentina triumphing.

Next year, the U.S. will host the inaugural expanded Club World Cup, where City will be taking part as 2023 Champions League winners. And in 2026, in partnership with Mexico and Canada, the States will host the largest ever World Cup.

“We've become more sophisticated in our approach because we've made a very conscious effort towards the next generation of soccer fans in the U.S.,” Nuria Tarre, City’s chief marketing officer, explains to GOAL. “We identified very soon in our journey that the U.S. market was a very important market for us as we saw the potential of soccer growing. Our success in the last few years has been spectacular.”

City’s sustained success on the pitch, including winning 17 trophies in eight seasons under Guardiola, has undoubtedly been a key factor in the club’s growth, as has the presence of global stars such as Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland. But City’s strategy of appealing to young fans and tapping into their interests outside of football has played a huge part in the club’s growth.

Tarre explains: “Success helps a lot but it is not enough. If we just based our strategy on football success, in 20 years’ time, we’d be in the same place as the other clubs that were winning 10 years ago are right now. So our strategy has always been: how can we accelerate our presence? How can we actually authentically engage with the next generation of fans and maximise the impact of the on-pitch performance?

"Globally, and especially in the U.S., we’ve tried to position ourselves not only as a football brand, but more part of what we call the soccer culture. So we pride ourselves in being at the intersection of fashion, innovation, gaming and sports.”

City’s development of E-Sports teams, particularly in 'EA SPORTS FC' (formerly 'FIFA') and Fortnite has been part of that strategy in appealing to young fans, as has their slate of behind-the-scenes documentaries.

City were the first soccer team to film a series of ‘All or Nothing’ on Amazon Prime, which was more associated with following NFL franchises. Arsenal, Tottenham, Juventus and the Brazil team have all since followed suit.

“'All or Nothing' was a brave choice from our side, one that we pride ourselves on," Tarre says. "Some of the choices we made, such as being present in gaming, showing behind the scenes of the club, feel very normal now. But just six, seven years ago, they were not. We haven't been afraid to take some risks to look at the business in a different way."

On the back of the documetary's success, the club began using its in-house production company City Studios to tell the story of each season. This year, the club partnered with Netflix to release ‘Together’, the inside story of the treble winning season, on the streaming platform.

“We are also trying to make sure that we bring the club as close to the fans as we can. We think this is part of the success as well. We are showing the behind the scenes, showing the players as they are as personalities, but showing the club as well in its humility, its highs and its lows. And we think that whether you're a City fan for the last 20 years or whether you started being interested in City more recently, that way of showing the club resonates with that young audience.”

The success of 'Together', which has eclipsed the number of viewers of 'All or Nothing', shows how much the club has grown. It was translated into 30 languages and within the first few weeks of its release, it appeared in the top 10 documentaries on the platform in 35 countries.

Tarre also highlights the fact that Premier League fandom in the United States is more flexible than in Europe, and specifically England. Many young people who are interested in the game in the States are not yet wedded to one team. A lot of fans, particularly those who got into the sport through video games, are drawn to specific players rather than tied to a specific club.

That presents an opportunity for City and the other Premier League teams touring the U.S. this summer, especially those looking to diversify their revenue streams to meet the league’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR).

Fan data specialists CLV Group calculate there are 83 million soccer fans in the U.S., 44 percent of whom are undecided on which team to support. According to CLV Group’s report 'Hearts, Minds and Wallets - Connecting and Winning U.S. Fandoms : A Guidebook for European Clubs', there are a potential 36 million fans that City can look to win over, although they face fierce competition from their Premier League rivals, as well as the top European clubs and even MLS teams.

"Manchester City's growth in the U.S. football fan market has been impressive over the past few years, but make no mistake, there’s still a huge opportunity here for growth,” Neil Joyce, CEO of CLV Group, tells GOAL. "With the ability to connect to around three million locked fan connections, the Cityzens have firmly established themselves as one of the leading Premier League clubs in terms of American support. But now they have the chance to go even further.

"The stakes are high, and our fan identification and connection data shows that successfully connecting with this group could mean huge potential benefits for City, worth more than $30m per season - the third-highest figure for an English club behind only their rivals Manchester United and Liverpool, whilst being hot on the heels of Barcelona."

Joyce emphasises the importance of clubs using their tours as more than just a chance to play matches in front of new fans. He recommends that City should be focusing their time and funds on spaces such as anime, sports games, electronics, and fintech, and investing in celebrity partnerships in order to “successfully capture the imagination of a diverse and youthful U.S. audience - and drive huge revenues for the club.”

He adds: “Looking beyond the tour and keeping the engagement developing, whilst investing in those followers, viewers and fans who are at the beginning of their relationship with Manchester City is key. The clubs that execute with not just today in mind, but the future development of new territories and fandoms, will win.

“City's great start in this space, coupled with their recent successes on the pitch, perfectly positions them to win the hearts and minds and ultimately, wallets of these fans. Blending sport with entertainment and digital innovation will create awesome potential for growth and increased revenue in the U.S.”

One way City have already looked towards the entertainment world to boost their profile is by appearing in the hit series 'Ted Lasso'. City were the first club to appear in the series, with West Ham, Tottenham and Crystal Palace among other clubs later following their lead. City have appeared in all three seasons, and Guardiola even made a cameo in season three, meeting Lasso, played by Jason Sudeikis, on the sidelines of the Etihad Stadium.

“We were the first. When we were approached by Apple the series didn’t exist and we didn't expect it to be as successful as it has been,” explains Tarre. “We liked the fact it was a scripted series about soccer and Manchester City were gonna be portrayed in a positive way already from the beginning. We were the only club in the first season, we've been present in the three seasons actually. And I think there's there's about to be a fourth season.

“We hosted Jason at the Etihad and he’s met Pep a few times now. Pep enjoyed his cameo. He said several times, you know he prefers football [to acting], but he was really happy to be in the series. And again, it's been very well received in the U.S.. So we knew that this was going to be potentially an interesting project and to take the time to invest in it and partner with Apple on this was the right choice.”

City have also partnered with WWE for their current tour. Wrestling legend John Cena announced the U.S. tour in a video call with Erling Haaland, while the club and the WWE have produced a clothing line especially for the trip, including t-shirts featuring Becky Lynch, Roman Reigns and ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin designs.

City and WWE also jointly designed new name and number styles that the team will be wearing in their shirts during their four games on tour. WWE Women’s Champion Bayley and WWE Superstar Baron Corbin attended the launch at the City Store in New York last month.

City have an exciting two-week trip around America to look forward to and are hoping to see even more fans turn out than in 2022, when 80,000 crammed into Lambeau Field for their game against Bayern Munich, with Haaland making his first appearance for the club and scoring the first of his many goals.

And they will be back next year for the Club World Cup, when the stakes will be higher and City will be competing against fellow European powerhouses Bayern, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, among others, as well as recent CONCACAF champions Club Leon, Monterrey and the Seattle Sounders.

“We’re very excited because we've already qualified and these will be games that really matter,” Tarre adds. “I think it makes a difference and we are really looking forward to it. I think it's going be a unique opportunity to keep on engaging with fans.

Americans, then, better get used to the sight of City this summer, as they will be soon back, looking to defend their crown as world champions and complete their takeover across the pond.