British premier league soccer club Manchester United Plc is in talks with Far Eastern licensees to build a chain of up to 50 company stores throughout the region. Reuters reports from London that the club is holding talks with individual licensees in Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, China and Hong Kong in a bid to set up proper wholesaling and distribution channels for the team's fans in the Far East. Manchester United spokesmen declined to comment.

The club is said to have appointed Mr Peter Kenyon as deputy chief executive earlier this year specifically to build a global Manchester United brand and target the Far East market.

Manchester United, a FTSE250 member, is due to unveil its full-year results on Tuesday.