Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has expressed his ambition to see a Premier League match played in New York, as part of a proposal to take fixtures to a variety of locations across the world. FIFA is set to launch a working group to investigate enabling domestic games to be played overseas, a controversial idea that attracted opposition from the footballing body when the Premier League proposed it 16 years ago.
Werner, however, believes it is inevitable that the future will feature world travel for the English clubs: “I even have the sort of crazy idea that there would be a day where we play one game in Tokyo, one game a few hours later in Los Angeles, one game a few hours later in Rio, one game a few hours later in Riyadh and make it sort of a day where football, where the Premier League, is celebrated.”
Compensation for domestic fans would include cheap travel and accommodation. Liverpool owner John Henry, however, disagrees with Werner’s idea. He said: “It’s not something that I advocate or am particularly interested in.” Many Premier League clubs, including the huge following of Liverpool, regularly visit the US for pre-season friendlies.
FIFA has worked out a legal dispute with US-American promoters Relevent Sports, with a view to playing official season games outside of a league’s home territory. The deal is “pending … consideration of changes to existing Fifa policies.” Meanwhile, La Liga hopes to move matches abroad by 2025.
However, the Premier League previously abandoned its proposal for a 39th game at locations outside of the UK due to FIFA’s opposition to the idea. Despite this, it is becoming increasingly common for global footballing giants to consider playing matches in different countries as part of their strategies to tap into new markets and maximise revenue
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