Carlisle United: Tom Piatak wants to take Blues to Florida

The club’s new owner says a trip for the Blues to his home city of Jacksonville is something he wants to “make a reality”.

And Piatak has already held discussions with officials in the city in the hope of setting up such a trip and building further links between Jacksonville and Carlisle.

While United are focusing on a number of crucial home fronts – including the battle for League One survival and several infrastructure developments at the club – the idea of spreading the Carlisle gospel in the States is also on Piatak’s mind.

The logistics businessman admitted he was keen to take the club to America when asked by a supporter at a fans’ forum whether a “pre-season trip to Florida” might one day be possible.

“I would love to [do that],” said Piatak.

“I will say this – we have had discussions with Visit Jacksonville, which is the tourism [organisation] for the Jacksonville, Florida area.

“We’ve had very positive discussions with them already.

“We’re in discussions with trying to link sister cities – Jacksonville and Carlisle.

• Meet the new Blue Army - in Florida!

“We discussed the topic of the fact that I would love to bring the club over at some point, and they were very enthusiastic about it.

“We’re going to circle back [on that]. After that discussion, they know what we want to do – I’m going to try and make it a reality, we’re going to try and make it a reality.”

The idea of United venturing to the States would be intriguing new ground for the Blues.

The Piataks want to build close connections between Jacksonville and Carlisle (Image: Ben Holmes)

And their owners, who bought the club last November, are also hoping their knowledge of the USA sporting scene could also benefit Carlisle.

The Piataks’ firm Magellan Transport Logistics has a close association with NFL team Jacksonville Jaguars as well as other sporting clubs.

Piatak said they are looking to learn from their connections to see what may or may not work at Brunton Park.

“We’re working with the Jaguars, and reach out to them quite frequently,” he said at Tuesday's south Cumbrian supporters' club fans' forum.

“We’re reaching out to them right now on a couple of processes, and we can learn from what they’ve done.

“We’re also reaching out to some other clubs in the US that we have connections with to learn about what they do.

“I definitely think there are things we can bring. We’re also working with some of the American investors who own English football clubs, an getting their best practices.”