By Jayden Whitworth
Over the last 15 years, Leicester City has gone from a small club in the third division of English football to a global brand that reaches all corners of the globe.
With the Premier League growing astronomically across multiple countries, including the USA, India and Saudi Arabia, Premier League clubs are taking on a larger fanbase.
More than 5,000 miles away in Philadelphia, USA, many fans have adopted the Foxes as their favourite Premier League team.
American Leicester City fan, Ben Ferree, made the 11,000-mile round trip to Leicester last Thursday to watch the Foxes take on Jesse Marsch’s Leeds United side.
Speaking before the game against Leeds, Ben, who is co-founder of the Philly Foxes, said: “I am buzzing right now, I am so excited.
“Hoping for the best tonight, I’m hoping for goals. Selfishly, when the schedule came out, we circled Leeds.
“There are a lot of American connections there, with Brendan Aaronson, who is actually from Philadelphia, and Tyler Adams and Jesse Marsch.
“I would love a win today, but we’re staying realistic this year. We really do need a win though.”
Leicester City took all three points against Leeds after a 2-0 win thanks to a Robin Koch own goal, and a well-worked Harvey Barnes goal.
Leicester City has not only had a massive impact on sport fans across the city, but they have had a big impact on the city itself. They are a community driven club, as seen by the introduction of the Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha foundation after the late chairman’s passing.
Ben said: “One word to describe this club is community, that’s the simplest way to put it.
“The first time I ever went to a pub to watch Leicester, we went to New York. The guys (New York Foxes) there immediately came over and introduced themselves and gave us a tour of the bar.
“That’s just something you don’t get with other clubs, especially in the States. I feel that here. Going into all the pubs in town, everyone knows everybody.”
The Philly Foxes is a newly-founded LCFC supporters’ group based in Philadelphia. To keep updated on LCFC in the USA, you can follow them here: @Philly_foxes.
