Connecting Asia to the EPL and beyond

Football is massive. Its is claimed that Manchester Utd have 325

million followers in Asia Pacific. (Kantar sports study)

It’s a passion point. A fan will join up with other fans in coffee

shops and bars to watch the games live and is happy to stay up late to watch the games.

Fans want validation. A fan will be keen to gain news and

will scour the forums, Pay TV, club websites, social media and local fan clubs for information, gossip and some sense of connection.

There is a Gap. Whilst APAC provides good coverage of games

they do very little for pre/post match analysis and key opinions.

Why?

A weekly 45 min podcast presented from London and Singapore with a focus on the English Premier league made especially for the Asian football fan.

Taking the global game and making it feel local.

Giving fans in South East Asia a direct connection to the heart of the EPL, an inside track to the major issues in England and Asia from experts and the stars themselves.

The Podcast: Our Vision

Each week we will be joined by a big name from the EPL.

In the first few weeks we expect to hear from star players from the past and present from Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea.

The Match Winner

Current stars such as Jamie Carragher, Vincent Kompany, Rio Ferdinand, Michael Owen

Ex-pros such as Denis Wise, Dietmar Hamann, Stephane Henchoz and David James

Managers such as Rafael Benitez

Key personnel within the game such as commentators, presenters and referees e.g. Peter Drury, John Dykes, Andy Townsend, Howard Webb, Jeff Winter

Potential Interviews

The show will be hosted by international DJ and BBC presenter Nihal in London. Each week he will be joined by a different guest from the football world ‘live’ in the studio.

Respected journalists Neil Humphreys and Mayur Bhanji make up the rest of the team giving views and insight direct from studios in Singapore

A life long Tottenham Hotspur fan but most people will know him as DJ of international repute. He has a regular show on the BBC’s flagship music network, Radio One and a weekday phone in on the BBC Asian Network.

Nihal Arthanayake

He regularly DJs around the world and appears on a variety of TV shows in the UK. As a British presenter of Sri Lankan origin he takes a keen interest in the media in the Asian region and is Trustee of the British Asian Trust and the British Council

A British journalist of Indian origin. Currently the Football Producer at Fox Sports Asia, (formerly ESPN StarSports) he has worked for some of the largest media organizations in the world including BBC Sport and Real Madrid TV.

Mayur Bhanji

He regularly reports on the Barclays Premier League and UEFA Champions League and has interviewed some of the most influential players and administrators in football including FIFA President Sepp Blatter, UEFA President Michel Platini, Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher and Chelsea Interim Manager Rafael Benitez. Mayur has impeccable contacts in football both in Europe and in Asia where he now lives.

Clarence Seedorf (left) Mayur Bhanji (Right)

One of Singapore’s best-selling authors and an award-winning football writer. His works on Singapore are among the most popular titles in the past decade. His fifth book,Be My Baby, (2008) chronicled his journey to parenthood and was his first international best-seller. Humphreys went on to pen two novels –Match Fixer (2010) and Premier Leech (2011) – to critical acclaim in the UK. Both books were best-sellers in Singapore. Humphreys has written extensively for Esquire Magazine, FourFourTwo, The Straits Times, TODAY, The New Paper, Men’s Health and many more.

Neil Humphreys

He is also a popular Premier League TV pundit on Tiger, It's Your Shout, a football discussion show in Singapore.

To aid content production and program management

He has produced some of the biggest sports shows on British Radio and TV including ‘Match of the Day’ and ‘Sports Report’. He now runs a sport and media company whose clients include Nike, BBC, Laureus and the ICC Champions Trophy.

Caj Sohal

Almost two decades working in football media. A former Head of Football for the BBC he is one of the most experienced sports specialists in the UK . He was responsible for planning the national coverage of the EPL, the UEFA Champions League, World Cups, International football and various other tournaments and competitions.

Brands include Proctor & Gamble (Gillette, SKII H&S, Pantene etc), Tesco, Coca-Cola, Hugo Boss, Gucci, Shell and more.

Amit also has a holistic understanding of digital with past experience in management of digital platforms, performance based marketing, digital and social activations.

Amit Patel

Specializing in content marketing Amit has APAC experience in content strategy, communication, sponsorship and creation and acquisition for branded entertainment.

• The Premier League and The FA.

• Close ties with top clubs Clubs e.g. LFC, MUFC, Tottenham Hotspurs, MCFC and Chelsea

• Ex-pros, sports personalities and current footballers

• Ties with major sports brands e.g. Nike, Adidas, Warrior

• Ties with publishers and broadcasters

• Contacts with commercial brands

Key Contacts to success

1. Twitter Engagement from theFootball45 with followers through Q&A, updates, questions for upcoming interviews, competitions etc.

2. Increase influence through blogs

3. Increase awareness through leverage of the digital presence of key influencers: • Fans

• Ex-pros

• Celebs

• Footballers

• Sport personalities

Brief Social Media Strategy Overview

Trial and feature the first four shows on publisher digital properties across SEA. (starting 2nd April)

Publisher to estimate reach.

Report weekly stats to measure success

Discuss possible routes of monetization based on metrics and production value after trial.

Proposal