Just like ‘The Raid 2,’ English football has gone international

"The Raid 2: Berandal" Teaser Poster

The highly anticipated sequel to The Raid: Redemption made waves online when it was announced that three high-profile Japanese actors – Ryuhei Matsuda (Nightmare Detective), Kenichi Endo (Visitor Q), and Kazuki Kitamura (Azumi) – would be joining the cast. It’s clear that the scope of The Raid 2: Berandal has widened beyond the claustrophobic confines of the first film to encompass an entire gang war on the streets of Jakarta. It only makes sense that the Yakuza should get in on the action!

Much in the same way that The Raid 2 has gone global, so far has the English football scene. The English Premier League is the richest football league in the world – and it’s also by far the most international. This is perhaps why there is so much interest in the Premier League in Asia – and particularly so in the performance of Asian players.

Of course, betting on football in England and other countries is also an enormous industry in Asia and every game really comes under the spotlight. In particular, the performances of Man United’s Japanese midfielder Shinji Kagawa have come in for an enormous amount of scrutiny since the 24 year-old signed him from Borussia Dortmund in July 2012.

Kagawa played 20 times for Manchester United during last year’s title-winning season under manager Sir Alex Ferguson. But since Ferguson stepped down and David Moyes took over at the Old Trafford helm in time for the new season, Kagawa has struggled to make the first team line-up on a regular basis.

Manchester United are around 9/2 to retain their title with Betfair, the world’s largest betting exchange which is proving so popular in South East Asia. And whenever Kagawa plays – there is a huge upsurge of interest.

And there are signs that the Japanese midfielder is beginning to get a real toe-hold. He has put in a few excellent performances of late playing in behind Rooney and Van Persie. Kagawa is undoubtedly a raw talent but he will need games to develop and to prove his ability under the new system under Moyes. Whether he will be able to get that experience, though, is quite another matter.

But it’s not only crucial for Kagawa himself that he does play – it’s also essential for the development of Asian footballers at the highest level. Japan is the world’s third-largest economy with a population of 120 million. If a player from Japan can star at the top level in the world’s most competitive league – then it will work wonders for South East Asian player development and interest in the game in general – and 10 or 20 years from now, we could see the Premier League with scores of top level players. Then again – things could go the other way; so there’s a heck of a lot riding on this!