When Ferran Soriano took over as Manchester City chief executive, the challenge was moving the club from one market to the next. Each market was fine in its own right, but as ambitions on the pitch grew, the club had to start targeting different sponsorship and partnership deals.
Commercial offices opened in Shanghai more than a decade ago, with bases in Singapore and Tokyo. City began pursuing the companies and fans that Manchester United were wooing, to the extent that they would often finish a presentation and see United's representatives come into the room to pitch as they were packing up.
United had two things at that point that City did not: decades of success and the power of a superstar player, with Park Ji-Sung a hero for his exploits in the great Sir Alex Ferguson teams towards the end of his tenure. Chinese defender Sun Jihai had made more people aware of City in Asia than might otherwise have been the case, and the 2008 takeover further put the club on the map, but they were far from where they wanted to be.
A selfie worth more than sponsorship deals
Player power can go a long way. Even though City had no Asian player at the time to boost their popularity, they received an unexpected spike when Sergio Aguero took part in one of the most extraordinary selfies ever taken, posing with then-UK prime minister David Cameron and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the opening of the City Football Academy in Manchester. That single image was more valuable than countless sponsorship deals in making City visible across Asia.
A decade ago, City estimated that half of their 400 million fans were in Asia, with 80 million in South East Asia. Their success under Pep Guardiola has sent that support soaring. As one fan from Hong Kong told the Manchester Evening News, when he started supporting City in the mid-2000s none of his friends could believe he could back a team with no champions in it.
Jackpot tour and record revenue
Just as everything came together on the pitch in 2023, City hit the jackpot with a tour of Japan and Korea a few months later. It was not a World Cup year, so all their stars were available, and a friendly with Atletico in Seoul set a new club record for most revenue generated on a single matchday. Even compared with their previous visit in 2019, the level of support had gone up several notches thanks to the subsequent trophies.
Even when City did not visit every summer, they have gone above and beyond to recognise fans in this part of the world. That has been visible through trophy tours, a Matchday Live show last season, and collaborations including Haaland learning a viral dance routine from K-pop group Blackpink and the Chinese New Year kits that have become regular.
The club has put particular care into understanding fan culture and habits in the region. In the biggest markets, top clubs now reach audiences through broadcast, short-form video, creator culture, gaming and live events, not just match viewing. As one Korean fan told the Manchester Evening News: "While our recent performance and star players have played a huge role, there is one more reason why the club is so beloved here: the 'sincere' way our official Korean social media channels engage with us."
"Even though there are no Korean players on the team, the club consistently respects and celebrates our culture - from the start of the school year to our national college entrance exams. This level of attention is unique and makes us feel genuinely valued. Even fans of rival clubs often mention how much they envy the special connection City has with its Korean supporters. It is a huge source of pride for us."
Industry recognition and Haaland's Chinese stardom
Recognition has come from industry experts. City were ranked ahead of Manchester United and Barcelona as the top European football club in a 2025 Red Card Report produced by Mailman, which looked at digital performance, fan engagement strategies and growth in Asia.
Haaland has also embraced City's methods as he grows his own brand. He has had an account on Chinese social media platform Weibo for a year, where he is known affectionately as Ha Bao (Ha Baby) and has become a symbol of "abstract" energy for the younger generation with his extravagant facial expressions. He has played into the obsession, joining a viral meme of eating trains and starring in an advert for Chinese herbal tea brand Wanglaoji set to the Haaland song, in which he breathes fire after eating barbecue meats. Three days after Norway beat Brazil at the World Cup, Haaland overtook Neymar as the most followed foreign athlete on Douyin, China's TikTok.
Norway's gain was Asia's loss, and there is sadness across the continent that Haaland will not be on this tour because of how far his national team got at the World Cup. But individual superstars cannot sustain a fanbase alone, and that is where the rest of City's daily effort pays off.
Hong Kong, Korea and the next step
Hong Kong serves as the alternative to China, the region's biggest commercial market but a country that has effectively stopped hosting high-profile summer friendlies involving European teams. Many Chinese fans are expected to travel in for the game, and Hong Kong reacts well to big events, fan zones and experiences such as the exclusive Puma kit launch on Thursday with a stunning Victoria Harbour backdrop.
Korea is a premium market with a strong domestic league fandom, a passion for the Premier League and an enormous response to international teams coming to play matches and run training sessions. City made £16m in 2023 from two games in Japan and one in Korea, and they will be looking to better that this summer. And the more followers they pick up, the more fans there will be to learn all about the club.
Former City midfielder Fabian Delph told the Manchester Evening News last season: "The club is growing. It's crazy. I went travelling for six months when I retired and the amount of City fans that spotted me was crazy. I went round South East Asia and everywhere I went people were spotting me. It just goes to show that people are keeping an eye out for Man City."
That would not have happened so well without the eyes that City have fixed on tapping the opportunities Asia can give them.
