Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony on the importance of breaking into the American market and what the club can learn from Wrexham

MacAnthony, who has lived and conducted in business in Florida for well over a decade is now close to completing the process of officially becoming a US citizen.

Speaking on his Hard Truth Podcast, MacAnthony has been discussing the importance this could have on helping the club increase its presence in the United States of America and what more can be done to build the popularity of the EFL in the country after the remarkable success of clubs such as Wrexham.

The club has become a financial powerhouse in the EFL largely thanks to the profile co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney as well as the proceeds gained from the popular Welcome to Wrexham documentary that has now released four seasons on Disney+.

Birmingham City are not trying to tread a similar path spearheaded by minority investor Tom Brady with the release of Built In Birmingham: Brady & the Blues on Prime Video.

The first series has been released and includes an incredible moment where Brady tells a Posh fan to “Enjoy this sh*tty little League One for the rest of you f*****g life, you little b*tch after replying ‘stick that in your documentary Birmingham’s Instagram after Posh’s Wembley victory.

Speaking on what Posh can learn from this success, MacAnthony said: “I like to think that out club is fearless and trailblazers on many fronts and this is another one. We’re looking into the future and we’re seeing the States.

"I will now be an American owner and we have to tilt into that with the market. After what we saw with Wrexham, there is a whole market out there and we, as a club, have to open that up and spend a bit of money getting our brand across the States.

“If that helps us have a bigger budget or a more modern stadium down the line and do all those things needed to kick our club onwards, sign me up.

“Everyone likes to slate Wrexham and have a little bit of a dig but if you look at their commercial success- based on their American popularity and what that’s allowed them to do with their first team, crikey. They are bidding £7m for strikers in the Championship right now. It is great business.

“What their owners have done has been majestic and now they are bringing in even wealthier people based on their popularity, which is allowing them to spend money no one in their right mind thought they would spend.

“Everyone wants a piece of that action in the States and I guess if you’re an American owner that helps as well.”

In the previous launch episode of season six, MacAnthony spoke of a new WhatsApp group put together of League One owners in the last month to discuss a variety of issues, including the future of the game. Around 19 owners are believed to be in the group and will be holding monthly calls going forward.

One of the ideas pitched by MacAnthony was increasing income by the clubs taking charge of marketing their own product, particularly in America.

He said: “When you look at the amount of money that League One and Two clubs lose, there is a lot of things we are trying to change.

“We all agree that we can’t keep going on as we are. Our income isn’t going up and our expenditure keeps rising. There’s loads of stuff we have talked about, including marketing our product better in America.

“My idea was let’s all throw five grand in the pot and do it ourselves. We don’t feel it is being done as well as it could be.

“Quite a few of us are fans of how the NFL run things. We spoke about marketing ourselves better over there. There’s so many things we could do better. You’re seeing the effects of Wrexham. Obviously, we are not saying any of us will get near that but it is our job to monetise that awareness of the EFL that has come from Wrexham and Birmingham with a World Cup next year.”