Following the unprecedented success of the debut campaign, where 70 million fans were reached in India, the new season of Gulf Fan Academy promises to be bolder than ever with the academy spreading to 60 countries.

The academy was created so fans of the world’s largest football club could engage with their favourite stars. This term, they can participate in four challenges, share them online and watch a collection of fun and exciting videos, featuring Paul Pogba, David De Gea and Alexis Sanchez.

The challenges, designed to be easy and fun, will give fans around the world the chance to win an all-expenses paid trip to the Theatre of Dreams. Last season, Gulf treated nine superfans to the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, all of whom made the journey to Old Trafford to watch The Reds take on Swansea City.

Gulf Oil Lubricants India Limited Managing Director, Ravi Chawla, said: “We received a massive response from Indian Manchester United fans last year, and it spurred us to go global this time.

“In the first edition, we managed to reach out to 70 million people through our integrated campaign. I am certain that this year the academy will be able to engage with far more fans from across 60 countries.

“This season, we have packaged it on a grander scale, with 11 of the biggest Man Utd fans from India getting a chance to travel to Old Trafford to see a live match.”

As well as 70 million people reached, the #GulfFanAcademy trended on social media throughout the campaign, thanks to the consistent distribution of digital content. The launch itself was the number one trending story for three days on Twitter and a week on YouTube. Also, the hashtag #GulfFanAcademy recorded 800,000 unique engagements.

Pogba, De Gea and Sanchez all feature in a brand-new launch video, released in September 2018.