Chevrolet Surprises Bradford City Fan With Dream Trip To Wembley

LONDON – Feb 25,2013: It’s the stuff of football dreams to watch your club playing a Football Association (FA) League Cup final at Wembley – but when your team plays in the fourth tier of English football, it’s possibly a once-in-a-lifetime game.

For super-fan David Bowers, 42, the dream has come true as his club, Bradford City, takes on Premier League side Swansea City in the final on Sunday. Bowers was determined to make his way to Wembley, despite the fact he now lives nearly 17,000 km away in Australia.

Bradford made it to Sunday’s final after a fantastic run that saw them dispose of Premier League sides Wigan, Arsenal and Aston Villa.

And Bowers will be there in person thanks to a helping hand from Chevrolet. “I just could not believe that this was actually going to happen,” he said. “It wasn’t until I received confirmation of my flights that I fully realised I was going to Wembley. Whatever happens, this is an historic game for Bradford.”

Bradford-born Bowers immigrated to Australia 15 years ago, but his love for his team didn’t fade. “I’ve always followed my team and watched the few televised games involving Bradford,” he said. “I thought that it would be great if I could be at Wembley on Sunday to be part of the team’s history.”

As a joke, Bowers posted a photo of himself on Facebook on 24 January with a note asking for one million ’likes’ to persuade his wife to allow him to fly to the UK for the match. But a day and 250,000 likes later, Bowers began to believe he would hit his target.

He received a boost when Chevrolet promoted his quest, leaving him with 1.7 million likes and a nod from his wife to travel. Chevrolet even helped finance his trip to the UK for Bradford’s showdown against Swansea City.

“One of our goals is to celebrate the beautiful game and the passion of football fans around the world,” said Alan Batey, vice president of global marketing at General Motors. “Through our football sponsorship, we are able to help put fans closer to their favorite team, even if it is not Manchester United or Liverpool.”

To complete the package, Chevrolet will also be provide Bowers with a Chevrolet Volt for his entire visit, which coincides with his mother’s birthday and his sister’s final breast cancer treatment.

Since August 2012, Chevrolet has provided tickets to 150 fans from Boston, Massachusetts, US, to Manchester, England, and Mornington, Victoria, Australia. Throughout the football season, Chevrolet has identified and fostered relationships with fans throughout the world, offering them the opportunity to see their favorite club play.

“By providing the opportunity to see their team play first-hand, Chevrolet is enabling fans to celebrate their passion for the game by putting them back at its heart,” Batey added.

Chevrolet FC updates its Facebook cover photo to showcase the ‘Fan of the Week’, celebrating the fan who demonstrates an exceptional passion for and devotion to his or her favorite team.