to those saying they are buying Howard to make him the starting keeper after Barthez is gone: stop dreaming now that man u is coming to america and their tour is sold out they have realized that there is a lot of money to be made here. What better way to make more money than to buy Howard and sell shirts? Don't get me wrong I think Howard is a great keeper and is the best in mls. I do not think they are seriously thinking of making an mls keeper the starting keeper in a team that competes in the second best league in the world and also competes in the top european competition. now am i the only one that thinks they are buying him to sell shirts?
They won't sell many if he sits on the bench. So, no, I don't buy that arguement. If he's starting, the shirts will sell.
If that's what they are doing, I think they'll be in for a disappointment, soccer jerseys are not a very hot commodity here. Maybe that'll change. But it could be plausible, didn't Arsenal sign Inamoto to get into the Japanese market?
>>>I do not think they are seriously thinking of making an mls keeper the starting keeper in a team that competes in the second best league in the world and also competes in the top european competition. now am i the only one that thinks they are buying him to sell shirts?<<< Manchester United doesn't need Howard to "sell shirts", they need Howard to "win games". Do I seriously think they will be making an MLS keeper the starter for blah blah blah... you obviously don't have a clue. Howard has incredible potential, he may not start for Manchester U immidiately but he will start for them eventally. He is good enough to be mentioned as being "better than Friedel when he was 24 yrs old" so imagine that...
Pretty much. But they found that shirts sell a lot more if the player actually plays, and they realized that Ina wouldn't beat out Vieira any time soon.
"Howard has incredible potential, he may not start for Manchester U immidiately but he will start for them eventally. " yes but eventually might mean a few years, after all man u is already looking at Kahn and other keepers.
If that's true, my pet cat has better business sense than Manchester United. And if that were true, I wouldn't need to work anymore.
If they agree with the many who say that he is ahead of where Friedel and Keller where at the same stage in their careers, perhaps they are just trying to make a good move and get him before Arsenal or someone else does. They also "invest" in players when they think they are a bargain for what they could be in the future. Just like stocks. Future potential earnings. I also don't think he is that far away from being able to start in England but that's just one opinion.
has any keeper ever been bought to sell shirts? are enough keeper shirts sold to justify doing so, however big the name? i've got to think no. timmy hasn't even made his mark with the nats yet, and that's where the greater fame lies for american players. maybe if landon or clint went there and became a huge EPL star they'd see some US revenue, but timmy? c'mon. but as far as the question of whether or not an american would be allowed to start....umm...who was the best keeper in england this year? and who was that other guy who played in goal every second of every match for his epl side? if anything, expectations are going to be greater for US keepers than others. it's the one position where i think the prejudices have probably subsided.
I think some are thinking not about keeper jerseys but just selling more Man-U stuff here because an American is on the team. Everton sold more jerseys in the US when McBride played. I don't think it's anything that is substantial enough to make player decisions on (like keeping Becks). Winning is still the best way to sell jerseys.
Nothing wrong in opening a relativly new market for their merchandise considering SARS is probably puting a considerable dent in their fan base.
He was using the SARS epidemic to poke fun at United's huge Asian fanbase. People in Asia are being killed by SARS, therefore United's fanbase is getting dented. Funny, no?
Just some fun with math: Howard makes $275k per year and signed a four year contract with MLS. Presume, which is unlikely, that he makes the exact same with Man U. A MetroStars replica jersey sells for $70 at the MLS store. Let's assume for fun that Man U. would sell a shirt at the same price and could get 50% of the cost of the shirt as a licensing fee, so $35/shirt. That equals 7,850 shirts a year. Now, be more realistic and start thinking $5-$10 a shirt and a $500,000+ contract, moving more into the 100,000 shirt range. Draw your own conclusions.
Yes. People buy them. It's a bit rare for them to launch a new away kit or third kit the very next season though. They usually stagger them - new home one year, away the next, home the next year, etc. I think Howard signing for United would have nothing to do with kit sales actually. (Other than the fact that I'd probably buy one.)
According to basic economic thought, you have to have demand for a product to really sell that product. I'm a big fan of Tim's but there really wouldn't be any measureable demand for his shirt. I think ManU just want an inexpensive keeper with ability and potential.
i have only seen howard play once but obviously with the interest shown by man u as well as the glowing comments on this board, the guy has some serious talent. i dont think it is fair to say that buying him is to sell shirts, however, when considered with the rest of his attributes, age, size, talent, the fact that he is american and that he has already generated popularity in the us by playing in mls makes him even more attractive. when you compare him with keepers of similar skill, i think because he is american, and the marketing possibities that come with that, make him more desirable. keep in mind man u dont just sell shirts, they want people to pay to watch their games on tv, pay for info on there website, etc. so i think in their opinion, picking up howard, an extremely talented, young keeper, right as they are building up a pr blitz of the us, couldn't be a better buy, especially as the us is widely considered as the biggest untapped soccer market in the world. they get a great keeper for the years to come as well as a foot in the door of the us market.
I think it's quite obvious, I mean look how hard it is to find a Metro shirt with Howard on it, so they must be selling like mad already, right? Man U is obviously trying to tie into that huge phenomenon that is sweeping the entire Eastern seaboard known has Howard-mania.