Premier League’s 39th Game Gets the Middle Finger

By: Daryl | February 13th, 2008

Scudamore Not sure what reaction the Premier League expected from potential venues for its cashgrab “international round”, but I’m guessing a collective middle finger wasn’t part of the business plan. That’s what it’s getting right now, with the Asian Football Confederation, Football Federation Australia and US Soccer all saying the exact opposite of what Premier League ~~money whore~~ chief exec Richard Scudamore wants to hear.

And who can blame them? Having a Premier League game in your country will definitely sell out and definitely make someone somewherere that extra bit richer. But it’s not going to help the short or long term future of your domestic league.

Scudamore will no doubt try and argue otherwise, but the most realistic scenario involves a Premier League game coming to town, being a huge spectacle and taking attention away from the resident domestic league for the weekend. Maybe some fans will see the Premier League game and then try out the local league. And imagine their surprise when they find C-Ron doesn’t play for the K-League’s Pohang Steelers. But many more will go in the other direction and abandon the local league for the weekend the soccer circus comes to town. How is that helpful?

Football Federation Australia chief exec Ben Buckley “>sums up exactly why it isn’t:

To play an EPL game here in the middle of our season would clearly be detrimental to our primary focus of developing the A-League. We would have no hesitation in using our rights not to sanction the event. We haven’t seen a lot of detail, but from what we understand there are no benefits in this proposal whatsoever.

Asian Football Confederation President Mohamed Bin Hammam went one further, calling on all Asian leagues to raise a sea of glorious middle fingers*:

I always welcome the exchange of knowledge and expertise between foreign football associations and clubs and support matches which benefit the development of our clubs here in Asia, but at the present time I can’t see the wisdom in the proposed plans.

It is my belief that it is not a good idea to organise domestic leagues in territories other than their own. If this principle is accepted then the FA Premier League must accept reciprocal arrangements within their own territory.

Saying that, my recommendation to the AFC executive committee would be to reject any initiatives of this nature. And we would urge the AFC member associations to protect their own national leagues and clubs within their territories.

And US Soccer’s Sunil Gulati outlines a precedent:

We’ve been reluctant to have official games played in the U.S.,” Gulati said. “We’ll be guided by FIFA on this matter. But if it’s not in line with its rules then we won’t sanction it. We had a similar proposal 10 years ago when a team playing in Los Angeles wanted to play in the Mexican league. We didn’t let that happen and CONCACAF said no.

So with Australia, Japan, China, Korea, the Middle East and the United States all ruled out as potential venues, where in the world is the English Premier League going to play these games?

How about England.

*bloggers interpretation