Tottenham Hotspur Football Club (THFC), who plays in the English Premier League. is coming to Colorado next week, as they will be the opposing side in the MLS All-Star Game on July 29, but their appearance in MLS’s midsummer classic is just one aspect to the international trip for the club with an international following.

Tottenham has one of the most ardent and passionate fan bases in the EPL. It’s no secret in the UK, and something fans stateside will see in full display during All-Star week. This will not be a fly in, play the match, fly out, visit. The club, which carries a rich football (soccer) history, plans to extend their North American influence while in Colorado. In addition to their on-the-pitch duties, Tottenham will immerse themselves in the Denver community during their stay.

As we outline below, this week represents more than just a friendly for Tottenham – a true blessing for football (soccer) fans in Colorado and across the U.S.

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How Big are the Spurs?

Outside of the UK, Tottenham has over 40 Official Supporters Clubs across North America, more than any other EPL team. Representatives from 26 of those clubs will be coming to Denver for the MLS All-Star Game to support the Spurs.

In Colorado alone, there is a sizeable Spurs fan base that continues to grow. In fact, Colorado Spurs is a website dedicated to everything Tottenham and they also update fans frequently on their Facebook and Twitter pages. Expect to see Colorado Spurs fans take over Denver when Tottenham arrives.

Tottenham are relatively experienced in coming to the United States. In fact, 2015 will make two summers in a row visiting North America, as the team stopped in Seattle, Chicago and Toronto last summer to play friendlies against the MLS based teams from each city.

They also visited the States in the summers of 2010 and 2012 again participating against MLS based teams.

Tottenham has the experience of playing in the United States on these summer tours but never in the MLS All-Star Game, something their coach Mauricio Pochettino is relishing.

“We’d like to thank Major League Soccer for the invitation to take part in the 2015 All-Star Game.” Pochettino said via mlssoccer.com. “The fact that this will be our only fixture outside of Europe during preseason says a lot about how we view this game. We enjoyed three tough matches last summer in North America and the quality of football in MLS continues to grow every year.”

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What Brings the Spurs to Colorado? What Will the Spurs Bring to Colorado?

While Tottenham is in Colorado, they will be doing much more than playing a game next Wednesday and jetting off back to the UK. Fans of Spurs will have plenty of opportunities to see their heroes live.

Check out the can’t-miss events below leading up to the MLS All-Star Game:

Monday/6pm: Welcome party at Three Lions Pub. Supporters will be able to meet and share in the excitement of the week ahead.

Tuesday/10am: Open training session at Dick Sporting Goods Park (autograph session following). This will be a surreal experience for fans to get up close and personal with their favorite Tottenham players.

Tuesday/2:30pm: Toy drive for Colorado Children’s Hospital. Supporters can deliver gifts alongside some of the players. This is a unique experience that will allow some fans to give back alongside Tottenham players. This is certainly a very special experience.

Tuesday/7pm: Supporters Club evening. Spurs guests Brad Friedel and Ledley King at the Blake Street Tavern, preceded by a supporter march from Skyline Park. This offers a chance to all Spurs supporters to gather and enjoy a night with two club legends, as well as giving fans the chance to get loud and sing songs on the march to Skyline Park.

Wednesday/9am: 5-a-side soccer tournament at DSG Park. For supporters and partners, brought together by THFC and Under Armour. This is a rare opportunity to play a little soccer on the DSG Park before the main game takes place later that night. If you fancy a kick about before the match, this is the cant-miss event for you.

Wednesday/7:15pm: Kick off of the 2015 MLS All-Star Game. David Villa, Steven Gerrard, Kaka, Andrea Pirlo and many other soccer stars from the MLS will descend on DSG Park Wednesday night to take on Tottenham in what promises to be a match full of excitement.

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A Brief History of the Spurs

Tottenham was founded in 1882 and are also known simply as Spurs. They will be making their first appearance in the MLS All-Star Game and are the first premier league club to appear in the match since Chelsea in 2012.

Located in North London literally a few miles away from their archrival Arsenal, Tottenham have had a loyal following of fans for sometime in England.

Built in 1898, White Hart Lane, is the home stadium for Tottenham, but recent reports show that they are building a new stadium to be open for the 2018-19 season. A true sign that Tottenham continues to grow.

Gareth Bale was one of the clubs best players making 203 appearances from 2007-13, before the Welsh winger left to Real Madrid in the summer of 2013 for a then record fee.

Since then, Tottenham have rebuilt their squad yearly. French national team goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen, and Belgian trio Jan Vertonghen, Nacer Chadli and Moussa Dembele are some of the top quality players on the team.

Furthermore, Spurs fans worldwide are hoping that new revelation Harry Kane will be a new club hero. Having made his first-team debut at 18, the now 21-year-old Kane was part of Tottenham’s youth academy from 2004-2009, before being loaned out to gain experience.

Last season, Kane finally made a grand introduction scoring 31 goals in all competitions from 51 appearances.

While Tottenham have not had notable success in recent years, Spurs have won trophies at every level. Their greatest moment to this day came in 1960-61, when they won the league and FA Cup in the same season, known as completing a ‘double’ in the UK.

Overall Tottenham’s trophy cabinet looks like this:

Top-Division title: 1950-51, 1960-61

8 FA Cup’s: 1900-01, 1920-21, 1960-61, 1961-62, 1966-67, 1980-81, 1981-82, 1990-91

4 League Cup’s: 19710-71, 1972-73, 1998-99, 2007-08

2 UEFA Cup’s: 1971-72, 1983-84

1 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup’s: 1962-63.

Tottenham for some time has had a connection with the United States. US Goalkeeper Kasey Keller made 85 appearances for Spurs from 2001-05. Current Seattle Sounders and American legend Clint Dempsey made 43 appearances for Tottenham scoring 12 goals in the 2012-13 season of the English Premier League. Brad Friedel, another American goalkeeper made 50 appearances’ for Spurs from 2011-15. Now Friedel acts as a club ambassador for Tottenham.

Even current USMNT head coach Jurgen Klinsmann played a season with Tottenham during the 1994-95 season and was named the clubs player of the year after scoring 21 goals in 41 appearances.

Looking to the future, exciting 22-year-old American DeAndre Yedlin recently made the move from the Seattle Sounders to Tottenham and current US U-20 international Cameron Carter-Vickers is a highly touted prospect in the Spurs youth system that could see time during next weeks MLS All-Star Game.

Continuing on, former Tottenham stars Jermaine Defoe played the 2015-15 season with Toronto FC and current LA Galaxy star Robbie Keane had two stints with Tottenham and scored 122 goals in all competitions from 2002-2011. Keane will have the chance to face his former team next Wednesday, after being selected an MLS All-Star.

The transatlantic connection between Tottenham and the USA is stronger than most clubs in all of Europe and one that will continue to grow, as evidenced by Tottenham having had a long-term partnership with the San Jose Earthquakes with the primary objective focusing on soccer and commercial development through the exchange and implementation of best practices both on the pitch and in the front office. This has also led to the two clubs collaborating on community and charitable endeavors.

Finally, Darren Eales was director of football administration with Spurs before moving to Georgia recently to become president of new MLS expansion team Atlanta United FC, who will play their first game in 2017.

Sammy Mugharbil, a Mile high Sports intern and MSU-Denver student contributed to this report