Super fan Anthony is the Premier League number one in the States!

Michigan-based Spurs fan Anthony Raffa has provided yet another example of our fantastic supporter-base in the United States after winning a nation-wide competition to find the most passionate Premier League fan in the whole of America.

The 28-year-old student entered the contest, run by VisitBritain, by compiling a short video demonstrating exactly how and why he’s so enthusiastic about his beloved Spurs.

And, in a real show of just how popular the Club is across the Atlantic – we have more official Supporters’ Clubs in the States than any other Premier League outfit – he was this week crowned as the overall winner. His prize – to visit the UK next season to watch one of our matches live and in person.

“I’m super excited about it and I can’t really believe it!” beamed Anthony, who lives with his wife Kaylee just outside Grand Rapids. “For the competition, I created a little two-minute video with all my Spurs gear on and tried to come up with a clever way to show that I know some of the songs that are – or were – sung at White Hart Lane. One of the reasons I gave for being the biggest fan was that ‘I love Eric Dier, Eric Dier loves me’ – that was a great reason to pick me as a super fan!

“I grew up playing soccer and really enjoyed the game and as we started seeing more Premier League games coming on the television here around 2011, I started following Spurs for a couple of reasons – one, because they’re super fun to watch with their attacking mindset, always trying to score goals and, two, I’ve really enjoyed this recent ‘rise’ of Spurs and so I’m a super fan in terms of I’m loving what we’re doing right now and how the team is progressing.

“I’m always following the Club on Twitter and Facebook, sharing it with friends and family and I’m always trying to get people to watch with me. I’ve got a couple of friends that unfortunately have other clubs but we still get together and watch the games in the morning over here, or go out to a pub or something if there’s a later game.”

Congrats, @anthonyraffa – you’re our US #superfootballfan! We’re sending you to Britain to cheer on your favourite #PL team @SpursOfficialpic.twitter.com/idNHLfdRIF

— VisitBritain (@VisitBritain) June 20, 2017

While he’s got a trip to England to look forward to in 2017-18 courtesy of the competition organisers, Anthony cannot wait to watch us live and so he’s already booked his tickets for our pre-season clash with Manchester City in Nashville, Tennessee, on July 29.

“I’m going to get to the game in Nashville this summer,” confirmed Anthony, who has been hooked on the beautiful game since he was nine years old and played for the junior varsity team of Stoney Creek Cougars in Michigan during his teenage years, after initially trying his hand at archery.

“It’s true that both at the large level in terms of watching the Premier League and also at the local levels, the game is truly growing over here and the people who are going to come and watch Spurs in the States this summer, they’re going to have an awesome experience, super fun and hopefully sing loud and proud for our Lilywhites!

“I’m just so excited to actually see Spurs in action live. I keep telling my wife that I’m like a 12-year-old at a Justin Bieber concert – I’m so excited! I’ve got my Spurs shirts – no names on the back because when you’re living over here it’s hard to choose one player! Obviously you’ve got Dele Alli, Harry Kane, Eric Dier and Heung-Min Son – all these guys are just a joy to watch. I’ve also got a ton of sweatshirts, I’ve had some friends give me socks and gloves, a couple of mugs with Spurs on them so I’ve got a bunch of different stuff. Obviously, in terms of the people at the club, the manager, Mauricio, is wonderful so I’m in – I’m 100 per cent in!”