Gary Neville joins forces with Mark Goldbridge as Man Utd icon strikes mega YouTube deal

Gary Neville’s The Overlap has purchased Mark Goldbridge’s YouTube channels The United Stand and That’s Football in a seven-figure deal

Gary Neville has teamed up with renowned Manchester United fan Mark Goldbridge following The Overlap’s announcement that it has acquired his YouTube channels. Goldbridge’s platforms, The United Stand and That’s Football, have been snapped up by Neville’s firm in a deal reportedly valued in seven figures.

The Overlap was established by Neville in 2021 and is renowned for its weekly podcast Stick to Football, featuring the former United defender alongside Roy Keane, Ian Wright, Jamie Carragher, Jill Scott and various guests. The business offloaded a majority share to media giant Global earlier this year and has now expanded into YouTube.

Goldbridge’s channels boast a collective 3.7m subscribers, with the personality behind them – real name Brent Di Cesare – becoming a household name across social media.

The partnership between Goldbridge and Neville makes an interesting development, considering their previous history. Goldbridge is renowned for his explosive and entertaining tirades about United matters and has previously torn into Neville, reports the Mirror.

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All that is now ancient history, given there’s serious cash to be earned in the thriving YouTube media world.

“Mark has criticised me more than most, but we don’t have to agree,” Neville told Broadcast Sport. “He knows what he does and he’s got to carry on criticising me. That’s how the world works.”

The Guardian reports the agreement is worth ‘a seven-figure sum’, and will see The United Stand and That’s Football given fresh branding alongside new content. The United Stand will feature Stick To United, a programme showcasing former players and journalists, plus The Daily United, a news programme.

Neville reveals there’s more in the pipeline, with The Overlap planning to acquire additional YouTube channels.

“[We] need to go into discussions with other channels, but we’re not in a rush,” he said. “We’ll wait for the right opportunities in the next six, 12, 18 months. I don’t think of it as a media empire.”

The 51-year-old revealed he recognised The Overlap’s need to expand following Ruben Amorim’s exit from United in early January. He had met Goldbridge the previous month and the agreement materialised swiftly thereafter.

“We are building what we believe will become one of the most exciting Independent football communities in the world – one that gives fans direct, personality-led content,” Neville said.

“The United Stand and That’s Football are two of the best-known football channels on YouTube, and our intention is to develop them into the most compelling Manchester United and football news channels in the market.”

Goldbridge stated: “I’ve spent the last 10 years building The United Stand for Manchester United fans and That’s Football for all fans, and I’m prouder of that than anything I’ve ever done.

“This deal is about what comes next. The Overlap has the ambition, the credibility, and the resources to help me take what I do to the next level.”