Newsletter: Our voice with Bees United, preseason, Player of the Year

Hi NYC Bees! First off, thank you for your continued support, especially during a pretty tough Premier League season! The fandom has only continued to grow, and we're eager for even bigger and better things heading into the 2024-25 campaign in the top flight! Here are a few bits of information, links and highlights to keep everyone up to date in the world of Brentford here in New York City!

Bees United: Our International Voice
Brentford FC's supporters' trust, Bees United, distributed their end-of-season newsletter on May 23. BU's brought me in for a variety of articles over the years, and so I contributed a piece: Stateside Perspective: Establishing Our International Bees Voice. The majority of the article is touting our growth, ranging from our media-related content, to our continued rise on Saturdays, to a couple initiatives on the horizon. All of you are well aware of the proactive approach we've taken, but it was a nice opportunity to remind the Bees United readership and supporters of how much has been put into this. Hopefully more pockets of international Bees fans will find their own niche!

More on NYC Bees: Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Media Hub

July and August Preseason Fixtures
Brentford finalized two firm times/dates for August preseason matches, and another matchup will be taking place sometime in July. The Bees travel to face Championship side Watford at Vicarage Road on Saturday, Aug. 3 (10 a.m. ET kickoff) and host German Bundesliga side Wolfsburg on Friday, Aug. 9 (2:45 p.m. ET) at Gtech Community Stadium. A fixture against Sutton United (National League) will be played behind closed doors sometime in July. I highly doubt there will be any broadcasts beyond in-house commentary, so we'll probably be out of luck with preseason watch events. I'll keep in touch with the club on these details.

Brentford News & Notes
Pinnock Names Brentford Supporters' Trust Player of the Year: Despite missing a handful of matches in the second half of the season, defender Ethan Pinnock was voted the Brentford Supporters' Player of the Year during the club's awards ceremony on May 15. Midfielder Vitaly Janelt was named the players' MVP, and Yoane Wissa earned goal of the season for his bicycle kick against Chelsea. Wissa also liked our Instagram post of us celebrating the moment at The Red Lion! Chloe Logie was the Women Supporters' Player of the Year after eclipsing 50 goals this season.

Euros around the corner: UEFA EURO 2024 kicks off on Friday, June 14, with the final taking place on Sunday, July 14. We'll have a handful of Brentford players involved in the event. Mark Flekken was named in the Netherlands' final squad. Danish trio Mikkel Damsgaard, Christian Norgaard and Mathias Jensen are head to the Euros. Ivan Toney made England's provisional squad, and the actual tournament roster is set to be announced on June 8. Stay tuned for the possibility of a watch event at The Red Lion; follow our social channels when that comes to fruition as we have not yet determined which match(es) we will make a "semi-official" gathering!

PL schedule release on June 18: The 2024-25 Premier League schedule is set to be announced at 4 a.m. ET (9 a.m. BST) on Tuesday, June 18! The season will officially start on Aug. 17. Visit premierleague.com for all the latest information on Brentford's fourth Premier League season!

Suggestions, Comments, Feedback
If you ever have any thoughts, feel free to email (brentfordnyc@gmail.com) or chat with me anytime! #COYB!

Charlie

Bees United Newsletter: Establishing our international Bees voice

By Charlie Corr
Bees United Contributor

When I was thinking about how to summarize Brentford's challenging season, the obvious focal point was the players and staff in overcoming their slew of injuries and a significant suspension to return for a fourth Premier League season.

My overriding thoughts, though, tended to focus on the supporting side of things. As a stateside group, for a good portion of the new American-based Bees fans who latched onto the club in the Premier League, this might have been one of their first tastes of enduring Brentford's hurdles for a season-long stretch. Of course, we all know that is nothing compared to select Bees teams of yore, and even myself, I only experienced the club's final seven seasons in the Championship before helping kick-start our humble international chapter in Manhattan.

I say all this as a prelude to what I thought stood out the most in 2023-24: A continually growing American group that dedicated most of its Saturdays at our pub without hesitation, appreciating the efforts, passion and nuances of what makes Brentford our grand club.

For more, visit BeesUnited.org.uk.

Bees United Articles:
May 23, 2024: Stateside Perspective: Establishing our international Bees voice
Dec. 28, 2023: International Greetings: From Across the Pond, Charlie Corr
Aug. 12, 2023: Bees in the States: Partying like it's 1889
June 10, 2023: Webb's gargantuan undertaking to prove VAR works in EPL
April 29, 2023: USA Bees: The NYC Experience

NYC Bees' Riley reunites with Forever Bees crew to chat Brentford

NYC Bee Lev Riley, a regular with our group since Brentford's promotion to the Premier League, was recently on the Across the Seas but Forever Bees podcast. The Newark, N.J.-based supporter was our first-ever guest on this show, so the May 2 appearance was a reunion of sorts to chat again with hosts Tim Searls and Greville Waterman.

Lev spoke about his recent overseas trip to Spain and West London, which obviously included a stop for Brentford. He, Adam Harder and Charlie Corr have all represented the NYC Bees on this American-based podcast, and numerous visitors to NYC and The Red Lion have also found their way onto this show.

For those interested in participating in this Brentford show down the road, please reach out to us and we'd be happy to make those connections with Tim and Greville!

Newsletter: Set for 2024-25, May stretch, Forever Bees, NBC

Hi NYC Bees! We're down to just three matches and have mathematically clinched our spot for a fourth Premier League season! Here's some information, news and links for you as we cap off the campaign:

... And Then There Were Three, at The Red Lion
We will be at The Red Lion for the final three games of the season in May, starting with our foe Fulham on Saturday, May 4. The Newcastle match on Sunday, May 19, closes out the campaign; anticipate a large crowd and several games being televised that day at the pub as all 10 Premier League matches are simultaneously played. We will have our normal space toward the back and will have the usual priority over any secondary match viewing requests. See the graphic for our schedule breakdown.

More on NYC Bees: Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Media Hub

Lev Riley, Charlie Corr, Tim Searls

Forever Bees, in NYC
The USA-based Across the Seas but Forever Bees has become a staple for us Brentford supporters, and that connection grew a bit stronger in April. The host, Tim Searls, made the trip to New York City and we had the pleasure of meeting him at The Red Lion for Brentford-Aston Villa! Myself and Lev Riley had previously been guests on his show, so it was great to finally connect in person! Tim spoke briefly about the trip on their April 9 show.

NYC Bees' Adam Harder (top right)

Then on April 23, NYC Bee Adam Harder joined our growing Forever Bees lineage and spoke on the podcast about the origins of his Brentford fandom. Make sure to check out his conversation on their latest episode!

Among other media opportunities this past month, I was invited back to our semi-regular spot on Premier League Fanzone, live Fridays on Peacock. I joined hosts Will Perry and Clinton Morrison for their April 19 show, leading up to our victory at Luton Town. On April 27, the NYC Bees were featured twice on the NBC broadcast of Brentford-Everton, at halftime and postgame!

I'm not sure how many more chances we'll have to get on further fan shows now that the season is nearing its conclusion, but I'll be on the lookout as always! And of course if any of you would like to participate, please let me know -- the more, the merrier!

Set for Season 4 in the Premier League
Despite our heavy dose of injuries and other hurdles, Brentford officially clinched a mathematical berth for our fourth Premier League season over the weekend! Thanks to Wolves' 2-1 victory against Luton Town, that put us outside the relegation zone pending even the most drastic results down the stretch. Later in the day, we unfortunately lost to Everton, and with that result the Toffees joined us in being safe from a bottom-three finish (they also earned a 71st straight season in England's top flight of football). With one month to go, 20th-place Sheffield United is the only club that is confirmed to be heading back down to The Championship; Nottingham Forest, Luton and Burnley are in a battle to avoid the two remaining relegation positions. Meanwhile, Leicester City, the 2015-16 Premier League champion, will be back in the top flight for 2024-25.

Brentford News & Notes
Five-star performance at Luton Town: Brentford's offense reached warp speed en route to a 5-1 victory at Luton Town on April 20. Led by a brace from Yoane Wissa, the Bees matched some history with their second five-goal performance in their three-season Premier League run. The other instance was Brentford's 5-2 win against Leeds on Sept. 3, 2022, with Ivan Toney notching a hat trick.

Wissa's first brace boosted his season goals total to a team-leading 10. He earned Premier League Team of the Week accolades alongside Bryan Mbeumo following that performance, and WhoScored.com named Wissa the PL Player of the Week.

Capital Cup winners: The Brentford FC women's team defeated Leatherhead FC 4-0 on Sunday to win the Capital Cup final! Chloe Logle notched a first-half brace, Maddie Phillips tallied from 30 yards out and Lucy Bolitho capped off the scoring in the closing minutes. Congratulations! Also worth noting, the Brentford women's B team earned promotion into the Greater London Premier Division in early April.

Quick Hits: The Premier League is going to announce its 2024-25 season schedule on June 18. Mark your calendars! ... Everton was deducted two more points for breaching the Premier League profit and sustainability rules. At the time of the April 8 ruling, that helped Brentford move up to 15th place, ahead of the Toffees. ... Last-place Sheffield United will open its 2024-25 Championship season in the minus column: The club will be deducted 2 points by the EFL for defaulting on payments to other clubs during the 2022-23 season.

Suggestions, Comments, Feedback
If you ever have any thoughts, feel free to email (brentfordnyc@gmail.com) or chat with me anytime! #COYB!

Charlie

NYC Bees featured on NBC for Brentford-Everton; 4th PL season set

The NBC Sports production crew has given the NYC Bees some strong play throughout the 2023-24 season, and we were featured once again on the NBC broadcast of Brentford-Everton on April 27. Our NYC Brentford supporters were featured twice on the day, at halftime and postgame.

Even though the Bees didn't get a result against Everton, it was a big day for Brentford as the club still mathematically clinched its spot for the 2024-25 Premier League season.

We have been on five NBC broadcasts this season, including our matches against Newcastle (Sept. 16, 2023), Everton (Sept. 23, 2023) and Arsenal (March 9, 2024), and our birthday shoutout to NBC Sports' Rebecca Lowe (Nov. 11, 2023).

NYC Bees' Harder shares Brentford fandom roots on Forever Bees pod

Adam Harder of the NYC Bees made his debut appearance on the Across the Seas but Forever Bees podcast on Tuesday, April 23. Harder has been a regular supporter at our watch events at The Red Lion since our second Premier League season. He spoke to Tim Searls and Greville Waterman about the roots of his Brentford fandom during the later stages of the club's Championship tenure, and talked about the growth that has stemmed from the experience stateside.

Harder is the third person among our NYC fanbase to join the American-based podcast, joining Levar Riley and Charlie Corr among the show participants. Check out Adam's story!

If anyone else would like to connect with Searls and Waterman, please reach out and we'd be happy to connect you to them for a future episode.

NYC Bees chat Mbeumo, Frank, Brentford-Luton on PL Fanzone

NYC Bees co-founder Charlie Corr made a fifth appearance this season on the weekly Premier League Fanzone, live on Peacock on Friday, April 19. The conversation covered Brentford's near-safety from relegation, the impact of Bryan Mbeumo, whether Thomas Frank ever felt the heat during this tough season, and what type of result is necessary against the Bees' opponent Luton Town on April 20.

If you are ever interested in participating in this international show, please reach out. They likely are set for their designated supporters and calls for the remainder of the 2023-24 season, but every year they're looking for additional voices.

Forever Bees' Searls touts Red Lion visit in NYC during latest show

Tim Searls, host of the American-based Across the Seas but Forever Bees podcast, recently stopped into New York City and visited the NYC Bees at The Red Lion on April 6 for Brentford-Aston Villa. He mentioned the visit during his latest podcast on April 10 (approximately 22 minutes into the show).

U.S. supporters have regularly participated on Searls' program as he regularly ties in our local fandom with commentary about the Bees. NYC Bees co-founder Charlie Corr has been on the show several times, and Levar Riley was our group's first participant on the show.

A big thanks to Tim for what he and Greville Waterman have done with this show. We'll certainly continue to participate in this podcast down the road.