THE YANKEES: ADMIRED AROUND THE WORLD

Recently, I had the opportunity to travel to the great city of London for work. It is a beautiful city, with great historical sights, and if you ever get the opportunity to see it, you should go. So why am I telling you this on a Yankees site? Well, the first night I am there, I am riding the London Underground to get to the middle of the city, when a guy sits down next to me wearing a Yankee cap. I had started getting used to the new surroundings, but this familiar site caught me off guard. I get to my destination, and as I am walking out of the station, I pass someone wearing a Yankees jacket. It really got my attention. I began to think that this was a Yankees town.

I have traveled to other parts of Europe and Asia as well, where one sees Yankee gear often enough to be noticeable. Yet I rarely see the merchandise of other baseball organizations, or even other sports franchises. If you look at Forbes’ valuations of sports teams, you will see their report says that as of March 2013 the Yankees are worth $2.3B. Yes, that is a B, as in billion. In fact, it is valued as the number one baseball franchise in the world, in terms of market value. Nearly a quarter of their worth, or $443M, is credited to their brand value. A lot of things factor into that, but a large part of it is based on a positive perception of the organization, and how much money an owner can make off the organization. A quarter of the Yankees value is based on the assumption that members of the general public like the organization so much, that they’re willing to buy tickets, cable packages, apparel, and other items that relate to the Yankees and what they represent.

That was when it hit me. The Yankees’ legacy goes far beyond just baseball in New York. The NY logo that we have grown accustomed to on our caps, T-shirts, jackets, sweatshirts, bumper stickers, and phone cases has global appeal. The history of winning that we all know and love is recognized and admired by fans across the globe. It can be trite to talk about 27 World Series championships, and the consistent theme of winning. Nevertheless, it has respect across the world.

Things like this make me even prouder to be a Yankees fan. People walking down the street five time zones away from the home base, proudly wearing the gear that represents the Yankees. It should be noted, that this all took place during the first couple of games of the World Series. Do you know how many people I spotted wearing anything with the Red Sox logo or the Cardinals logo? Zero. Not a single apparel item, not even a bumper sticker. These organizations are popular in their home cities and in the United States, but the Yankees are on a different level. It is easy to see why we are proud to be fans!

 
--Ike Dimitriadis, BYB Writer
Twitter: @KingAgamemnon
My blog is: Shots from Murderer's Row


The Bleeding Yankee Blue store is opened! CLICK HERE TO START SHOPPING! Also, follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.