Latest news with #PremierLeagueAsiaTrophy
RTHK
2 days ago
- Sport
- RTHK
Liverpool's return to HK 'to get close to fans'
Liverpool's return to HK 'to get close to fans' Liverpool ambassador Sami Hyypiä says it's important for the club to come to Hong Kong to get close to fans. File photo: AFP Liverpool legend Sami Hyypiä says the Premier League giant's upcoming match in Hong Kong is a chance for the club to strengthen connections with its many passionate fans in the city. The friendly against Serie A's AC Milan at Kai Tak Stadium on July 26 will be the English club's fourth visit to Hong Kong, following their last appearance in 2017 for the Premier League Asia Trophy. Hyypiä, who is the club's ambassador, told RTHK on Wednesday that he is truly touched by Hong Kong's passion for football, adding that he wants to express his heartfelt thanks to Liverpool fans for their support. "For the club, it's very important that we have these tours around the world... many fans come from far away, or they live far away from Liverpool," he told RTHK. "In Asia, you have to wake up at night to see games. And many people are waking up. So to bring the club a little bit closer to these fans is very important. And that's why it's very important that we come to Asia to play and to be closer to our fans." The Finn also dismissed suggestions that the only reason the Reds were recently crowned Premier League champions was luck. "I heard something that this season Liverpool was lucky, that other teams are not performing as they should perform, but I don't think that," the former centre-back said. "I think Liverpool were just the most consistent team during the season and we deserved to win the league. It's great for Arne Slot to win the league in his first year and not many managers have done it." AC Milan, meanwhile, will be returning to Hong Kong for the first time in 19 years, following a 2004 charity match against local side Kitchee.
New York Times
09-03-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Manchester United, Everton, West Ham, Bournemouth confirmed for U.S. pre-season tournament
Manchester United, Bournemouth, West Ham United and Everton will compete in the Premier League's Summer Series event in the United States at the end of July. In February, The Athletic reported the four clubs would compete in the pre-season tournament that will be played across Atlanta, New Jersey and Chicago. Advertisement NBC, the Premier League's exclusive U.S. broadcaster, confirmed the details on Sunday. While three of the four participating clubs are in the bottom half of the Premier League standings, they are all 16 points or more clear of the relegation zone with 10 rounds of action remaining and are anticipated to maintain their top-flight status. The Premier League had intended for another of its leading clubs, alongside United, to participate in the tournament. There had been hopes that either Liverpool or Arsenal could accept an invitation, but the former have instead opted to play their pre-season in Japan and Hong with the north London club expected to do similar. The series will add to Manchester United's existing plans of a post-season tour in Malaysia and Hong Kong, which they anticipate will earn the club $10million (£7.9m) in revenue. United will play West Ham in New Jersey on July 26, before playing Bournemouth in Chicago four days later and concluding their tour against Everton in Atalanta on August 3. United may separately play a match at the Snapdragon stadium in San Diego, as they have done the previous two years when visiting the U.S. on tour. The club's front-of-shirt sponsor is Snapdragon, part of the Qualcomm group, but an additional match to two existing tour plans may be gruelling for the squad. Bournemouth visited the U.S. last summer and are seeking to grow their market share and fanbase in the country under American owner Bill Foley, who also controls the Vegas Golden Knights in the NHL. They have USMNT midfielder Tyler Adams in their squad, as well as young 18-year-old American prospect Matai Akinmboni. Everton are also under American ownership since The Friedkin Group (TFG) completed its takeover of the club in December. The Summer Series will commence following the conclusion of the FIFA Club World Cup — which is also being played across the U.S. and includes Chelsea and Manchester City — on July 13. Advertisement The U.S., alongside Canada, will also host the Gold Cup tournament between June 14 and July 6. While the Summer Series comes during a peak period of pre-season, there is unlikely to be too much competition in the U.S. due to the conclusion of the summer competitive tournaments and pre-season tours elsewhere in Asia, Australia and Europe. This will be the second edition of the Summer Series, which commenced in 2023 but was cancelled in 2024 due to numerous complications around organising the event, which is the second pre-season competition affiliated to the Premier League to be hosted outside England after the Premier League Asia Trophy. In 2023, Brentford, Chelsea, Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Fulham and Brighton participated in the U.S tournament with each team playing three fixtures, with Chelsea finishing in first place with two wins and a draw. That edition of the tournament lasted for nine days from July 22-30, with the Premier League saying over 260,000 fans attended the series. GO DEEPER £2m per game and US is place to be - the commercial impact of pre-season (PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
