Brazilian website UOL continues doing a great job covering the Premier League, especially when it comes to Manchester City.
The outlet has been publishing a few exclusives about the club, and now has an interview with Claudio Borges, who’s in charge of relationships with fans at City Football Group.
The official, who’s Brazilian, spoke a lot about how City has been planning to expand marketing work in the South American country, as they only expect the fanbase to grow.
“Brazil is a strategic market for us, because it appears in the top positions on our social networks and visits to the site,” Borges told UOL. “So it’s absolutely strategic for us, that we still have the benefit of having Brazilian players, an attraction for our supporters.”
Manchester City currently have four Brazilians in the squad: Ederson, Danilo, Fernandinho and Gabriel Jesus. All of them are in the national team, which is obviously a very positive point for the club.
But the striker is really the one that makes the difference: “It is undeniable the appeal he has in Brazil. We see this in social networks, especially the growth of audience on Facebook from Brazil. He is one of the leaders in shirt sales. I can’t tell you exactly the numbers, but his success is great.”
On Brazilian people supporting the club, Borges claims the priority is for them to have Manchester City as their second favourite, and not the first.
“If you like football, it is natural to follow other leagues, such as the English and even the United States, which is growing. In this process, a greater affinity with a certain team arises, for several reasons: kit colour, a specific player, a game that you watched and liked.
“So we want Brazilian fans to choose City as their second team. We do not want the people of Brazil to stop supporting the local clubs, but also to follow the City. This coexistence can exist without any problem.”
But Borges doesn’t believe that a Manchester City preseason in Brazil will happen anytime soon: “The preseason decision is based on several factors: where the club has an interest, where the technical staff approves the conditions of structure and climatic conditions and, of course, the crowd issue. Although we do not have any short-term plans to do something in Brazil, it’s not impossible, anything can happen.”
