It is seen as an inevitability
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has called for Premier League games to be played in the US in a recent interview, causing a mixed fan reaction.
Firstly proposed by the Premier League in 2008 for games to be played abroad, a huge backlash instantly followed.
The proposal, which would have seen clubs receive around £5m from their involvement in an “international round”, was quickly dropped.
However, this year Jon Miller, an executive at NBC Sports, which hold the rights to screen the Premier League in the United States, outlined the network’s intention to host matches in the country.
Following this, Khan has waved his support for the potential of football to be played in the United States, speaking on the Sports Agents podcast:
“I think that’s the way it is going.
“We’ve seen some other leagues across Europe have some of their competitive games held elsewhere. All 32 NFL teams have now played in London and all of them have had a great experience.
“We have some of the top baseball teams now playing in London.”
He then spoke on how it why it should work:
“We’ve got seven Premier League clubs in London but when you look at the way the Premier League works, a lot of the revenue they receive is TV rights.
“Liverpool, the team that I support, are currently on tour in America. I think the point that the Premier League would make and some of the owners would make is, why can’t their fans in those countries benefit from a competitive game?”
Moreover, Khan then made a point on the need to make sure fans can’t lose out from this proposal:
“The key thing for me is to make sure our fans don’t lose out.
“The thing we’ve learned from American football is often when the players go back to America the next game is an issue because of time zone, because of diet and so forth.”
The Footballer Supporters’ Association make a stance
Following Khan’s comments, the Footballer Supporters’ Association instantly responded with a stern statement:
“Dear @MayorofLondon – a quick question. Are you really saying you’d be happy to see the North London derby played in LA or NYC?” they wrote on X.
“We suggest you talk to matchgoers (or the PM!) to find out what supporters really want – and we’re happy to meet you.”
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