Les Ferdinand has shaken the hands of thousands of fans over the years, but there is one encounter the Newcastle United great will never forget. It was the height of the Entertainers era and Ferdinand was out and about back home in London when a stranger approached him.
"I don’t support Newcastle but, any time they’re on the box, I get back to watch them," he told the legendary number nine.
If ever a sentence summed up the magic of Kevin Keegan's iconic side. This was a team that neutrals literally paid to watch - even while sitting at home.
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Newcastle are not quite everyone's second team these days - the club's unofficial motto is 'we're not here to be popular - we're here to compete' - but this is a story no one has been able to ignore. Indeed, it has not just Amazon's cameras who have been documenting Newcastle's resurgence.
Newcastle have had more Premier League games beamed out in the UK than the whole of last season and the Magpies will likely have had 28 top-flight matches selected for live broadcast by the time this remarkable campaign is over. Given the club's ambitions, that figure could even increase next season.
Broadcasters certainly know they will get value for money at St James' Park. Part-owner Amanda Staveley, herself, has said that TV companies 'love it because they get real content' and Newcastle have been involved in some memorable home games this season - from a thrilling 3-3 draw against Man City to an unbelievable 6-1 hammering against Spurs. Sky Sports have even got value for money from seemingly mundane picks on the road, such as a dramatic 2-1 win at Nottingham Forest or a 5-1 rout at West Ham. Judging by the audience figures, clearly, it is not just supporters of those respective clubs who are tuning in to watch Eddie Howe's side play.
"I'm pleased people enjoy watching us play," Howe told reporters. "I'm pleased we're playing in these types of games and we're a team in demand to watch. Hopefully, that's reflective of a team that is performing well."
Howe will certainly benefit from this increased exposure in the transfer market this summer with Newcastle set to bank potentially £20m more than the £126.65m they received for broadcast and central commercial revenues from the Premier League last season. This fee not only reflects where Newcastle end up in the table but, also, how often the black-and-whites have been on television both home and abroad.
The table of TV appearances over the course of a season will broadly match the final league standings and Newcastle's rise up to third has been reflected in the amount of picks in recent months. Having been tipped for a top-half finish at the start of the campaign, just three of Newcastle's opening nine top-flight fixtures were shown live in the UK. However, Newcastle went on to have a whopping 11 successive top-flight fixtures broadcast between January 3 and April 5 when the Magpies were establishing themselves as serious top four contenders.
Just as the team's turnaround has captured the imagination of broadcasters, the club's sizable fanbase will also have been taken into account. It is worth pointing out, for instance, that only Arsenal, Man City, Manchester United, Spurs, Liverpool and Chelsea had more games shown on Sky and BT Sport when Newcastle finished 13th in 2019.
According to the latest wave of consumer data by media analytics firm Ampere Analysis, Newcastle have the largest following in the UK outside the group of clubs previously known as the 'big six', with nine per cent of football fans supporting the Magpies. Jack Genovese, a senior analyst, with Ampere, has no doubt that has likely been a 'major factor in broadcasters’ considerations' - and that increased airtime only stands to help the club.
"Higher TV exposure is going to benefit Newcastle in two ways," he told ChronicleLive. "On the one hand, they’ll be generating even higher TV revenues as 25% of the domestic TV revenues are allocated on the basis of the number of TV appearances; but it will also increase the club’s exposure, which the club will no doubt use as leverage to improve its sponsorship deals in the future."
On the subject of exposure and potential sponsorship opportunities, internationally, Newcastle are also making a splash. In the US, for example, where Newcastle will be touring this summer, 22 of the Magpies' 33 Premier League games this season have been broadcast live on NBCUniversal’s linear TV networks.
Newcastle, as a result, have already surpassed their previous record for the number of games shown in a season on US television and ChronicleLive understands an average of 534,000 viewers have watched these matches on NBC, which is also a record for the club in the States. Adam Littlefield, who is a senior producer on NBC Sports’ Premier League coverage, has vowed that 'increased exposure will continue'.
“Newcastle United are a historic club pacing to finish in their best position in the table in the 10 years that NBC Sports has presented the Premier League," he told ChronicleLive. "Playing in one of England’s largest stadiums in front of passionate supporters, their success this season allows us an opportunity to spotlight those special aspects and traditions of the club in ways we haven’t been able to in prior seasons."
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