Barclays and the Premier League will bring the Barclays Premier League Trophy Tour to Souq Waqif in Doha, Qatar from April 14-16 as part of their global Tour over the next two years.

A dedicated website www.barclayspremierleaguetrophytour.com has been created for fans to find out more information, as well as to pre-book priority places for the Tour which will be open from 3pm to 11pm on the Thursday, Friday and Saturday of April 14-16^th. The free interactive experience will take fans through four domes:

1. The Changing Room - packed with unique interactive features this is a fact-based tour through the history of the current 20 Barclays Premier League clubs.
2. The Centre Circle – supporters will experience the noise and excitement of a match-day before learning all about the winning teams and captains of the Premier League.
3. The Trophy Room - fans can get up close with the official Barclays Premier League Trophy.
4. Becoming the Third Lion – through green screen technology, supporters will be able to picture themselves lifting the Barclays Premier League Trophy.

The Barclays Premier League is the biggest continuous annual global sporting event in the world, with the global audience growing each year - every match-day is broadcast to more than 580million households in over 200 countries. The Tour offers an opportunity for the many fans around the globe that may never get the chance to attend Barclays Premier League football in England to get up close and have a behind the scenes experience of the teams and players that they follow so passionately.

Marcel Desailly, who is a Barclays ambassador for the Tour and played two seasons for Al-Gharafa Sports Club in Doha, said: “ The Barclays Premier League Trophy Tour has already attracted over ten thousand fans to the first two events in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and I know from experience that Qataris are massive football fans, and really appreciate the excitement of the Barclays Premier League. I hope that as many fans as possible make it down to Souq Waqif and enjoy seeing what all the teams in the Barclays Premier League are playing for.”

The Barclays Premier League Trophy Tour will then next appear at the Barclays Asia Trophy in Hong Kong at the end of July 2011. Over the next two years until the end of the 2012/13 season the Tour will travel to China, South-East Asia, the United States of America, India and South Africa.

For more information please contact:

• The Premier League Press Office on 0044 (0)20 7864 9190 or email   This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
• The Barclays Sponsorship Press Office on 0044 (0)203 134 1778 or email   This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Notes to Editors

More about Barclays Premier League Trophy Tour

Each Tour will last approximately 30 minutes and a maximum of 30 people will pass through at one time.

On the day fans will walk through the Trophy Gateway, an inflatable replica of the top and crown of the Barclays Premier League Trophy, before heading into four differently themed pods:

1. The Changing Room - Each of the current 20 Barclays Premier League clubs has its own pod, many of which contain unique items of football memorabilia from current and former Premier League stars. Special exhibits include:

–         A chance to see if fans can kick a ball harder than Obafemi Martins.

–         Measure their feet against the actual boots of Aaron Lennon, Andy Carroll and Nikola Zigic

–         See if they can outstretch Petr Cech’s arms.

–         Attempt to run faster than Theo Walcott.

–         Experience the holler of the loudest fans from Stoke City and the passion of West Ham United fans singing “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles”.

1. The Centre Circle - A replica centre-circle where supporters get the sense of what it’s like to sit in Barclays Premier League stadia. Fans will experience the noise and excitement of a match-day before watching a film telling the story of all the teams and captains who have lifted the Premier League Trophy since the inaugural 1992/93 season.
   
   
2. The Trophy Room - The main exhibit; encased in a special cabinet, the official Barclays Premier League Trophy will be on show for supporters, who will also learn about how the Trophy was made and how it is restored to pristine condition for the day it is presented to the Champions.
   
   
3. Becoming the Third Lion - A personal memento for fans to take away from the Tour. Through green screen technology, fans will be able to picture themselves lifting the Barclays Premier League Trophy. The Trophy was designed with two lions either side and is ‘completed’ when held aloft by the winning captain, the third lion, thereby representing the three lions of English football. Fans can choose to have the trophy ribbons and background in the colours of any one of the 20 current Barclays Premier League clubs. Supporters will be able to download this unique memento from the Barclays Premier League Trophy Tour website after they have visited.

About the Barclays Premier League
The Barclays Premier League is the biggest continuous annual global sporting event in the world. Across nine months of the year 380 matches are beamed out to 580 million homes in over 200 countries. During the 2009/10 season more than 110,000 hours of coverage delivered an estimated cumulative global audience of 2.90 billion, while in England over 13 million fans attended Barclays Premier League matches.

About Barclays

Barclays is a major global financial services provider engaged in retail banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking and wealth management with an extensive international presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia. With over 300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs nearly 147,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for 48 million customers and clients worldwide.

For further information about Barclays, please visit our website www.barclays.com.