No matter who comes out on top of the titanic clash of the Big Four, Manchester United, under the watchful eye of Sir Alex Ferguson can still claim to be No 1.
They now have a staggering 333 million fans around the world, according to new research, and are preparing to move part of their administration to London.
United have long been the butt of jokes about the high proportion of fans alleged to live in the south of England. Now they have appointed Richard Arnold as their new director of global partnerships, with a brief to retain current blue-chip sponsors like AIG and Nike, and to recruit others who can help them tap into their fanbase.
Leading sports marketing firm TNS Sport interviewed at least 1,000 people in each of 21 markets from Ireland to Indonesia and the results surprised even their most bullish executives.