I've let it be known that being American, I chose Man U because they were one of the few teams I could catch on TV at any given time.
I read up a bit on 'em and just found them to be a team I could follow and root for. They've got a long-standing history and being known as the Reds or Red Devils isn't too bad either.
As far as local...I support the Houston Dynamo and have done so since they moved from San Jose.
Chris (or any other Brit) .. the Charity Shield, if someone wins both the FA and Premiership title, who do they wind up playing? I wanna say its whomever finished second in the Premiership, but I'm not too sure.