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Premier League abroad – your views
Friday 8th February 2008, 8:30AM GMT.
Calling all ex-pat fans – Premier League matches could be coming to you in the near future. How do you feel about it?
A meeting of the 20 top clubs yesterday agreed to explore staging an extra match a season that would be played in a city in Asia, North America or the Middle East.
The details of how the system would work have yet to be finalised but it would mean each club playing 39 games, with a draw to pick out each side’s overseas match.
So ex-pats are you excited at the prospect? Would you relish having Premiership matches in you back yard? Or do you think it’s a bad idea?
Let us know by filling in the form below – the best will appear in the Express & Star. Please include details of where exactly you live, how long you’ve been living abroad and which team you support.
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An excellent idea, lets hope they play in Singapore….
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Good-afternoon all!
Yes!More UK footie on the tellie!Excellent idea,
although most european tv stations DO show part
of some matches(usually only the goals).Thank
goodness we can receive BBC 1,2,3,4,prime&world
in most of Holland(3,4,prime&world,only via digital
tv via cable!
FJ Bartling,Hilversum,Holland,once a Dudley lad….
never forgotten!
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There’s going to be a massive uproar from fans who pay their hard earned cash to see their LOCAL team about this. Can’t see it happening!
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If the ENGLISH Premier League want to take the next step of turning a sport into a capitalist ‘commodity’ overseas that is one thing; to turn the League itself into a travelling circus driven by market forces is another.
I would not object to a pre-season event, but this proposal just shows how far these greedy money men are willing to exploit the beautiful game and the degree of contempt they have for its history, culture and other countries’ senior leagues. Hail, the new 21st century English imperialism!
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Dreadful idea but a symptom of where football is heading. I would suggest the only people who want this are the money men who are ruining football and its probably being driven by the influx of wealthy owners who are determined to squeeze the “brand”.
Managers complain that there are too many games, players are unable to complete a whole season without being affected by tiredness, fans pay through the nose for travel, beer, food and ticket pricing so who does this benefit?
It is often said that football is now a business and I believe this business is heading in one direction – Franchise. It will start with one game and quickly lead to more being played overseas. These games will have to be scheduled into the 40 game season so will it mean that matches during the winter period, for example, will now take place abroad? How will it affect managers’ perceptions of our cup competitions with players having to travel and needing to recuperate – more weakened teams?
Sometimes I wish the ‘bubble’ would burst and the people’s game would return but sadly those days will continue to be a distant memory. It isn’t the same game I grew up to love!
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When I was a kid back in the 40s, going to an away match was an event, a mystery, a delight comparable to Christmas. Now it is a form of identity, stating one’s origins as proudly as possible, “I’m an Albion supporter”. This is MY tribe. I suppose with all the foreign players now showing their skills we have become multi-cultural in football terms but whether this will work abroad I have grave doubts. Ex-pats will have a reason to attend but I just can’t see the average Chinese, Japanese, Aussie or Dutchman going for it on a regular basis. Maybe, just maybe, the Football League will finally divorce from the Prem. and go back to Divisions 1, 2 , 3 etc. Maybe I’m just too old to change. It’s unsettling though.
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Any chance of JP putting on subsidised transport to Miami or Beijing for us ??
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Just part of the greed migration; some might call it product geographical extension. Whatever it is, it isn’t English football!
Too many foreign players – why do we need an English FA?
Too much money for too few – as a result, joe public can’t afford to see games; eliteism.
Too many games – saturation?
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I’m not an ex-pat but I think the whole idea is ludicrous, let alone unfair.
I mean unfair on two counts, firstly the loyal fans who watch their club in all home and away games, they would now be faced with the expense and the using works holiday days to take in the lengthy trip.
Unfair again on the basis of some teams would have the requirement to play an extra game against the likes of Arsenal/Man Utd/Chelsea etc and other would face what would be deemed as weaker opposition in the ‘extra game’.
Can you imagine the uproar if the team that played Manchester United in the ‘extra game’ got relegated by a single point or two having lost this extra game whilst the team that retained their premiership status by one point had their ‘extra’ game against lower ranked opposition??
Crazy, greedy or both ??
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Absolutely motivated by money . What’s happened to English football ? Obviously Multi-Cultural football now . Very sad .
Villa fan ( Ontario Canada )
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The NFL has come to London why not send the greatest soccer league around the world to share the experience. Old fashioned values and lack of change would have not seen the premiere league grow to be what it is today.
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i`m a expat living and working in spain,we get to see every prem game live on tv over here through spanish or arabic satalite,if there were too bring prem games to spain you would have a great deal of intrest from the expats aswell as the native population but only if they are the likes of the BIG 4,who would want to pay to see wigan,fulham.boro ect??i`m a baggies fan who DOES travel back for some games,but i can`t see too many fans traveling abroad it cost so much to follow your team in england these days,how the hell can the money men justify this??
on a brighter note this should`nt effect the wolves for some years.boing boing.
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What a great way to promote the game!
It would be a fantastic promotion to see Man Utd V Liverpool at the Sydney Football Stadium in front of 80,000 fans like we had when David Beckham came with Galaxcy
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Why pay a prem ticket price to see Wigan v Fulham when for half the price I can go to support my local league? My local league has much more presience than supporting a random UK team. However if Wolves did travel (we are talking 2011) then of course I would go. The same as when in the UK I go to see the Wolves as often as possible.
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We have to put up with Waitakere united,Danny Hay,Niel Emblem apart we need QUALITY FOOTY here.
BRING IT ON!!!!!!!!!!
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