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Men in Blazers Honor Men at Work

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Haaland and Ream Take Inaugural Honors

SOHO – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Erling Haaland of Manchester City and Tim Ream of Fulham were named the inaugural “American Player of the Year” and “American American Player of the Year” in the Premier League, as voted on by U.S.-based fans via the Men in Blazers Media Network’s Raven Newsletter and announced on MiB’s Season 9 finale held Sunday on NBC and Peacock.

Men in Blazers host and co-founder Roger Bennett and popular commentators Robbie Earle and Rebecca Lowe announced the winners, who appeared by video accepting their awards and accompanying prize belt.

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“I want to thank everyone for voting me as American Player of the Year,” said Haaland on the program. “It’s a real honor for me and I have to keep going. Thank you for this award.”

Haaland was selected over other finalists Marcus Rashford of Manchester United, Bukayo Saka of Arsenal and Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur.

“I want to say a huge thank you to all of you who voted me your American American Player of the Year in the Premier League,” added Ream. “It’s a huge honor to win the award amongst the names that were in the running. I’m looking forward to getting back out there and winning it again.”

Ream’s fellow American American of the Year finalists were his Fulham teammate Antonee Robinson, Tyler Adams of Leeds United and Matt Turner of Arsenal.

“Football awards are an expression of the culmination of a season’s journey. That journey is different depending on your perspective — the place and reality of where you watch,” said Bennett. “MiB Network has been a manifestation of the growth in football fandom across the United States over the last decade,” he said.

The Men in Blazers Media Network is an independent soccer-focused media company in North America. The “American Football Awards” show followed the Premier League Final day. Man City took honors.

The finalists and winners were selected by thousands of fans across the nation.

New Awards to Headline “Men in Blazers” Branded Multicasts

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – The Men in Blazers Media Network, an independent soccer-focused media company based in North America, will expand their content offerings in conjunction with NBC Sports and the Premier League.

“The American Football Awards” will honor the Premier League footballer for the 2022-23 season as voted on by the growing audience of American fans. It’s a bit like the “Golden Globes of Soccer,” as seen through the foreign fans, as opposed to the Hollywood foreign press.

The accompanying “American American Player of the Year” will recognize the best American player in English Football. The first awards show will be seen on NBC on Sunday, May 28, following the Premier League Finals.

The new awards show will be hosted by Robbie Earle, Rebecca Lowe, and famed Men In Blazers guru in Roger Bennett. The winners will be announced and both will give their acceptance speeches on the show, directly addressing the American Premier League audience.

“For decades, the United States has seemed like the Final Frontier for Football, like Space was for Captain Kirk,” said Bennett, the Men in Blazers Co-Founder. “In the last decade, that has changed. The sport is surging. The audience is passionate and knowledgeable, and this award is both a reflection of their growing interest, and how seriously the Premier League teams and players take our fanbase.

“It is our hope this award will become the Ballon D’or for a U.S. audience, and are thrilled to partner with NBC Sports who have been such a driver of the growth of football in this nation as we continue to champion the growth of the sport in the U.S. on every level to the biggest audience possible,” added Bennett.

The finalists and winners were selected by thousands of fans across the nation.  Men in Blazers aka MiB will debut the women’s ““American Football Awards” this fall after the World Cup and conclusion of the NWSL season, with a unified, platform coming in 2024.

“The ‘American Football Awards’ continues Men in Blazers’ expansion as a leading pop culture, sports and entertainment platform,” added Bennett.

In March, MIB significantly added to its content lineup with talent and shows that now include: “Here We Go” with Fabrizio Romano, “The Road to the Cup” with Becky Sauerbrunn,  “VAMOS” with Herculez Gomez, and “Men in Blazers Live and Dangerous” with Sam Mewis on Twitch leading the Women’s World Cup 2026 programming, in addition to the widely followed and successful original MiB content.

What started as a weekly TV Show – now in its ninth season with NBC Sports and its accompanying Podcast affiliates  – has gradually become a 24/7 flourishing and integrated media network serving every aspect of global Futbol – both men’s and women’s – with a full slate of programming and talent across a variety of channels including a co-production partnership with Twitch.

All of this comes ahead of what will be an even bigger window of exposure for football interest and growth in the U.S., with the 2023 Women’s World Cup, the 2024 Copa America and the 2026 World Cup also scheduled for North America.

The continued interest in both the business and consumer engagement with MLS, the NWSL, US Soccer,  and other emerging properties. Men in Blazers partnered with Twitch prior to the 2022 Men’s World Cup, executing a strategy that fused “sidecasting” games live with celebrity guests by day, live “theater shows” by night, all streamed LIVE on Twitch. They were later combined with a daily cascade of podcasts.

The format nominated for Sports Emmy, had a total of six million unique viewers across the 44+ hours of live streams throughout the tournament. The content was amplified, cross-platform on social to create a 24/7 commentary which drove unprecedented numbers for Men in Blazers and its partners — reaching a high of No. 4 across all sports podcasts in the USA during the time-period.

The Men in Blazers Media Network has grown to be the largest independent soccer-focused media company in North America, covering the sport year-round, as it focuses on Premier League, Champions League, the US National Teams, NWSL, and other top leagues around the globe.

Men in Blazers Expands its Reach

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NEW YORK – (Staff report from Official News Release) – “Men In Blazers,” the popular futbal podcast and television broadcast, will expand its portfolio with two new podcasts, “MiB The Women’s Game Podcast” and “MiB European Nights” – both new podcasts will be sponsored by Paramount+. The property also began a new affiliation with For Soccer Ventures, soon to represent MiB in its business development with a goal to create new marketing opportunities. For Soccer Venture and MiB will begin new content collaborations across their platforms, including new podcasting efforts, digital video shorts, Twitch Watch Alongs, live events and e-newsletters.

“The UEFA Champions League is the most iconic and elite continental-wide soccer competition in the world” said Scott Debson, General Manager MiB, “The growth of the (USA-based) NWSL has been one of the greatest global football stories over the last decade. We’re thrilled to begin these two new podcasts and cover these amazing competitions.”

The “Men in Blazers European Nights” podcast, will be hosted by Roger Bennett and feature Rory Smith, chief soccer correspondent of The New York Times, as a recurring guest, is designed to frame the narrative of the week’s biggest European games for the listener, framing the stakes, the background stories, and possibilities ahead of the games, with warm, intelligent, football-first storytelling designed to empower an American audience to deepen their knowledge and appreciation for the history and backstory of each team and game. This podcast will set-up the current stakes, but also delve into the historical and cultural significance behind each game.

The new property will debut in the Spring of 2022, the Men in Blazers Women’s Soccer Podcast will build on longstanding relationships within the women’s professional game and will provide a positive, joyful, insightful, life-affirming analysis of the NWSL – analyzing the weekend’s past games and setting the stakes for the games to come. Men in Blazers have always showcased the individual stars of the women’s game and in the past, have used their patented interview skills to showcase the singular, elite narratives of the game and have developed deep, meaningful relationships and credibility within the women’s game.

In addition to the new podcasts, MiB also announced a strategic partnership with For Soccer Ventures who will help expand MiB’s commercial footprint and reach within grassroots communities across the country through FSV’s experience and properties – Alianza de Futbol – the largest Hispanic soccer program (boys and girls) in America, The Black Star Initiative, Footycon and The Association.

“Men in Blazers have been integral at growing soccer in America through pop culture over the last decade and we are absolutely thrilled to be working with their world-class team,” said FSV CBO Marc Horine, “They are the perfect fit to our growing list of soccer properties across all demographics, and with the FIFA World Cup on the horizon, we look forward to opening up new audiences, brands and soccer communities.”