Clarets top of North West clubs' overseas support

An overall winner from the 72 shortlisted fans will be announced on Saturday evening’s ‘Football On 5’ highlights programme on Channel 5 from 9 p.m., with that fan then being given the incredible opportunity to fly over and watch their team in action later this season.

The campaign asked overseas fans to register the team they support along with their country and city of residence, with the results then displayed on each club’s own map of the world at www.representyourclub.com.

A total of over 52,000 supporters from around the globe took part in the initiative, with at least one fan registered in all 247 of the different territories. The country with the most fans registered was Australia, with a total of 8,667 fans standing up to be counted for their Football League club.

Teams from North West England were remarkably well supported, with Burnley registering over 1,344 fans from countries outside the UK - 20 more than rivals Blackburn Rovers.

Accrington Stanley have 127 overseas fans, Blackburn 1,324, Blackpool 252 and Preston North End 550.

Commenting on the campaign, Shaun Harvey, Chief Executive of The Football League said: “Football League clubs have always been right at the heart of their local communities but it’s quite incredible that there are also fans of our clubs in every country in the world. It’s great to see the level of passion there is for The Football League around the globe and we are delighted to offer the opportunity for fans abroad to come and see their team live as a reward for the support they show their respective clubs.”

Topping the list of clubs with the most fans registered as part of the campaign was League 2 Notts County. Their total of 6,359 was primarily down to the unique support they have from the ‘Italian Magpies’ supporters group – established because of the club’s connection to Italian giants Juventus.