Big Picture proposals put the emphasis on Everton’s international development

I was extremely surprised that the clubs envisage a future where they directly sell their content to the market on their own behalf. I was even more surprised to note that this would only apply to international rights, excluding the UK.

My nephew is presently in his final year of economics at uni, majoring in behavioural economics. His take was that the clubs were actually taking the Scudamore strategy to its logical end – splitting and segmenting into ever smaller chunks. For budgetary and commonsense reasons, the clubs will take their own exclusive rights and resell them to a provider into international markets.

The net result is that the likes of Amazon, YouTube or Facebook are tempted to spring for the RS or Man Utd exclusive rights in Asia or the US at a huge premium. Obviously the rights for Burnley or Wolves will attract much less interest and thus money. This is just more money to the top tier at the expense of the bottom.

My streaming service, for example, here in New Zealand might bid for some of the top clubs' rights to buttress their own product, but with perhaps only a few hundred Brighton or Burnley fans in the whole country, what possible commercial justification would there be for bidding for their games? This will enhance and widen an already enormous gap between the big clubs and everyone else.

He also made the sage point: If it becomes more expensive and difficult to watch Premier League football, then less people will find the energy or money to watch Premier League football.

It seems to me that our success on the pitch right now is not just a pleasurable change in the norm, but essential if this club is to play any significant role in this brave new football world. By the time of this next round of rights bidding, we really must be ensconced in the top six or we face missing the boat – a boat that won't be returning anytime soon.

If Moshiri was aware of all this background, it makes his decisions to throw money at the problem until it's solved seem a little more sensible, and it makes his seeming lack of patience much more understandable. The ship's about to sail soon and we have to be on it.

Derek – good points. What goes for you in New Zealand probably goes for us in Australia.

Our international ambassadors could play an active role in promoting those things. And stuff the RS by using our Blue Liver birds!

Have we got a supporters club in Russia? If we haven't, we need to start one – after all, we have good contacts there.

In which case, couldn't we just hold the fuckers to ransom and demand top dollar if Johnny Foreigner (sorry just never had a chance to use that archaic absurd term) ever wants to see the RS, the Arse, or whoever set foot on Goodison?

It's also uncomfortable because, as a club one, of our key failings since the conception of the Premier League is our lack of commercial acumen. We not only missed the bus – we forgot where the bus stop was. (I remember going to see the Blues in Brisbane a few years back, the merchandise pre-game was limited, poor quality, out of date and expensive.)

It's being addressed since Moshiri took the reins but we need to have an international focus as you suggest with some very good initiatives, but they have to be locally managed and locally driven, not one-off initiatives from the Liver Building. Boots on the ground, country managers and investment in the countries that have significant potential for expansion and are sports nuts (India, China, US, South America) – make a list, have a plan, and start managing the opportunities on a 10-year plan.

It's clear too that the also-rans in the Premier League will not have the ability or clout to internationalise and will probably pool their profile collectively with a general provider for much less value than their wealthy neighbours, something we cannot let happen to us as the gap will only widen.

As Christine suggests, we are way behind here which is clearly a threat, but timing in life is important and despite us missing Christine's bus we are fortunate with our history, potential team development (at last) and the ground development to perhaps have a window of opportunity to put Everton back on the map again

Everton are in a position to emulate that success.

nb: Ironically, Everton only stand to lose £11 million in gate receipts which is about 5% of our turnover. Many of the top three are losing 5-6 times as much with 4-7 times as much lost as a proportion of total turnover:

The clubs losing the most revenue due to behind-closed-door games

Everton's club presence here is zero. I am the only Everton fan I have ever met and until recently I played in several indoor and outdoor soccer leagues (recreation) for well over ten years. My daughters also played on different teams for a combined 12 years. Never met an Everton fan and I am over 50 years old.

Everton rarely play here and rarely try to obtain American players. Clint Dempsey made A LOT of Fulham and Tottenham fans here. Christian Pulisic has just about every rabid American soccer fan watching Chelsea games - he is our biggest draw by far. Almost every English/Irish pub in America has been dominated by Liverpool fans forever - and we have countless thousands of those pub across America. Everton is not even an afterthought in this country.

First start winning - the club is starting to get more mentions in our tiny soccer-only media which is great. Second get some American players - there 12 in the Bundesliga alone as well as a total of 98 across Europe (in a nation's top league). Third how about playing some games here where it matters? And they should start in South America. As for the US. there are many clubs across Europe who play here EVERY year.
There's more but whatever.

You seem to forget, we had the biggest name in American football playing for us twice: Landon Donovan, former strikers, Joe Max Moore and Brian McBride. I will not count Antonee Robinson as he never played in the Premier League.

Everton are playing more often in America, and there are plenty of Blues about, you have been unfortunate in never coming across them.

America needs to produce more top class footballers, then maybe we might see some in Blue.
COYB.

I grew up on the streets around Goodison Park, and I now live in China.

Strategy and direction based around current players and existing fan communities makes sense. But longer term Everton needs to think about demographics and financial investment, and building radical new partnerships.

Partly through chance and children, Everton are the most popular team in the small expat community where I live. Maybe less by chance, my youngest son's football coach walks around wearing an LFC shirt. It does have a small but positive impact when a child insists on being an Evertonian in the playground and playing field.

I live in a growing port city of about 10 million people. There is no football team. There was a team, and they did wear blue. There is a small stadium, largely unused; this really could be a new Goodison Park in China with the right relationship building.

China is a huge opportunity for Everton. It needs the right partnership with the city, perhaps learning from the University of Nottingham approach. It needs investment in coaching and shirts and the sports bars.

China will host a World Cup, and it will be looking for football partners. China might host the World Cup as early as 2030. We are already beginning to see what might be the biggest and quickest investment in football infrastructure the world has ever seen.

Why isn't Everton looking to China?

I think you are doing a disservice to US based blues in saying that there is a zero presence. Each week large groups of local fan clubs meet at ungodly hours in pubs in cities, across pretty much every state. Even NBC highlights the fan group pictures during halftime of our games who meet up at pubs.

I've lived here 20 years and the only Blues fan I met started supporting Everton as he was a big fan of... wait for it... James Beattie. I've met a lot of fans here with a healthy respect for and knowledge of Everton but actual Everton fans? No.

Currently the marketing end is not up to speed with the improvement of management on the playing end. it consists of press releases on Everton in the Community and updates on Stadium progress, normally when the playing side is not that great.

Old unsuccessful ideas such as satellite Clubs are put forward, but fall down on back up. The Billboard lights of Rodrigeouz in the Americas is a new innovation and Everton have some new sponsors, who seem to be better deals. But our Americain friends , North and South, raise the same issues as yourself.

The Marketing Dept is staffed with the same staff, but with fancier titles, probably with a change in their renumeration, given to them by the Chief Executive, about three years ago. On the supporters side I don't think there is anything other than the online shop. Use to be a Supporters Club years ago , but when I tried to join it twice in my 40's, I got twice a Goodison Shooters membership which was for the under 12s, the highlight was a colouring in book. But I don't think your son will even get that. Maybe Lyndon can do something for the Young Everton Supporters, many of the posters on this site are similar to myself, and probably have ask them. Most are wise enough on here not to raise the issue. The Evertonian mag is sadly defunct.

By Seriously, though I have been serious up to now, when you look at the Accounts it is glaring that revenue from marketing activities has to increase. On a positive note the fact that Everton has such a poor Marketing activities based Revenue, means they are not affected by Covid as much as other Clubs according to the Accounts.

I can't see the changes that you want not being on the agenda for much longer. The improvement on the playing end should provide the momentum for radical change in the Marketing Department.

Yes, contacting Everton with ideas does not really work. I can imagine it is just as you describe behind the scenes.