Association football is a truly global phenomenon, perhaps the only one that unites people from every corner of the globe. Pretty much every country on the globe has a national football league and a national team. Most of them are famous in their own countries – but there are a select few that have grown beyond their borders. The national league with perhaps the most followers abroad is the English Premier League, known as the ‘strongest’ (and wealthiest) national league of them all. The league has a massive fan base abroad, with surprisingly large numbers in some countries.
Vietnam
English football is great entertainment. In Vietnam, it’s also readily available: broadcast TV channels in the country started showing EPL matches in the late 1990s. As Manchester United was one of the most successful teams at the time, its fan base in Vietnam grew fast, continuing to do so as we speak, thanks to the internet and the growth of trang cá cược uy tín (reputable betting sites, as the locals call them).
Many Vietnamese football fans gather in fan clubs around various English (and other international) teams, while others go where their idols are – football stars like Messi, Ronaldo or Erling Haaland.
Scandinavia
Scandinavian football teams are doing pretty well for themselves – there are quite a few with more-than-decent leagues and teams, not to mention players at some of the most successful clubs across Europe. But no matter how great local teams become, football fans will always have a special place in their hearts for English football.
Perhaps the most-followed English team in Scandinavia is Liverpool FC. This love affair with the Reds began in the late 1970s when local TV channels started broadcasting English football matches – and LFC was one of the most successful teams back then, so its fan base grew the fastest. And it stuck.
Today, a big chunk of Scandinavian football supporters are LFC supporters, with their passion passing on from father to son to this day.
Brazil
Last but not least, let us mention a nation that has given the world countless football stars… but still has a soft spot for English football: Brazil. According to Twitter’s Premier League followers map that keeps track of the most famous English football clubs’ Twitter following, around a third of Brazilian football fans love Chelsea, followed by Arsenal with around 20% share, and Manchester City loved by about 12% of Twitter users interested in football.
The popularity of these English teams is, no doubt, the result of some great Brazilian players wearing their jerseys over the years.
