ARGHHHHH! Manchester United brand partnership overkill!
by Chris Reed
I live in Singapore. I love Singapore. Apart from one thing. They love Manchester United. Worse than that. They sell Manchester United products everywhere. I mean everywhere. I walked into a chemist the other day and I saw Manchester United deodorant!!! I couldn’t believe it! Was nothing safe from that detestable Mancunian logo! Usually I see ManU shirts in all the Nike stores and sports stores, ManU t-shirts in all the department stores and Singaporeans wearing that horrible AON endorsed shirts up and down Singapore’s mains hopping street Orchard Road and in all the air conditioned Malls but recently the brand partnerships have been really getting out of hand too. I was in a supermarket the other week and saw ManUtd endorsed wine from Concha Y Toro! What is the connection between wine and ManU apart from ManU Manager Ferguson’s constant wining when things don’t go his way? Then I saw ManU Smirnoff Vodka in another supermarket. Is that because it’s clear to see how much ManU cheat? Now I see that DHL have done a partnership with ManU! Why? What is the connection between sending parcels and ManU unless it’s to celebrate that all the merchandise from the ManU superstore is sent overseas to their many fans around the world gullible enough to support them instead of a real football team? One of the more bizarre ManU partnerships is with Turkish Airlines…they followed Kevin Costner which says everything about that brand. Why Turkish Airlines and ManU? I wished it was because they played like turkeys! Kumho Tires anyone? Yep me neither. Is it because you get tired of Ferguson getting away with murder after every game when he criticizes referees for daring to award decisions against them? Seoul is another partner, is that because ManU are missing one? Audi are another and apart from being Scottish for “how you doing” and that they have a new black car and ManU are well known for their practice of the black arts there isn’t a lot of connection there. The most ironic of course is Hublot – official time keeper…as everyone knows that must mean that all Hublot watches are 10 minutes slow….enough time for ManU to score that way beyond injury time controversial winner! All in all their brand has prostituted itself to the highest bidder in every feasible category that it can and done it very well!
This article first appeared on http://community.brandrepublic.com/blogs/chrisreed/archive/2011/02/18/arghhhhh-manchester-united-brand-partnership-overkill.aspx