http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/29532996 Playing premier league games abroad, its all about the money.
It's a load of bullshit and symptomatic of the problems in English football at the moment. Seems like there's people everywhere trying to change things which will threaten our game; from owners, the football authorities to the police. You have to wonder what will be left of it in 10, 20 years time.
Just like the NFL franchise at Wembley. Why take the games abroad? It's the most watched League in the World already.
Because there are lots of people who do not watch it. The idea would be to increase viewership, and merchandising abroad. It might be the most watched League in the World but there is plenty of room for growth.
I wonder what the fans of those teams playing at Wembley think. I mean the real fans in America, not the plastics who turned up at Wembley to see a show. And the football would be the same, a stadium wherever in the world putting on a show for so called supporters of Man Utd or Liverpool.
The NFL Wembley games are really testers for that London NFL team they are meant to be introducing in a couple of years.
Firstly, plastics is rather harsh. NFL is incredibly popular here, and there isn't a local team for them to support (yet). Secondly, football does do it - you have seen these pre-season tours the big teams do, haven't you?
I dont give a **** about the NFL but most people that I do know who watch it do not like the idea. They think that it jet lags their team out and that the time would be better spent on the practice field than in an airplane. Its not a world wide sport so most NFL fans think its a waste of time to try and start up teams in England and Europe. It would be different if MLS teams started playing in Europe (they already play in other countries in CONCOCAF champions league). I dont think anyone would have any problem with that, its pretty normal for teams to go long distances to play games.
It's a terrible idea. The Beautiful Game? It hasn't been that for years. Football has become another victim of passionless commercialism.
NFL was incredibly popular in the 1980's when channel 4 started showing it. At that time a number of teams in the UK including Hull were formed. If at that time people had supported their local team rather than picking one of the big successful ones in the USA to follow, maybe just maybe, by now they would have been able to go to wembley to see their local team. Secondly I know about pre-season tours, but here we are discussing regular league games being played in another country.
So focus on your own leagues; everyone is welcome to watch our league, or even adopt it, but ffs leaves the games where they belong, at the grounds of those teams and supporters locally and historically involved.
So will the NFL and/or the PL have their own variations of The Harlem Globetrotters who will travel for semi-competitive show games or will they be given premier status to compete fully?
I think it's irreversible. Football is slowly being franchised. How many clubs are owned by Americans? More Premier League clubs will follow.Players are being swopped between teams in a franchise ....Frank Lampard. Relegation will be thing of the past as the US owners plough more money into their team. Money talks and the fans will be the last to be considered. Our beautiful game will change for ever in a relatively short time.
It is. They are doing the games in London to try and get enough interest that they can get a permanent team there.
American sports are a bit cack. It takes them three or four hours to finish a game because they'll call a time-out whenever someone farts. Just play the friggin' game.
Read over here that the time line for a permanent NFL team in London is 2022. No mention of who and where the team will play.
Totally agree just get on with it. Also its one thing to fill a game for once or twice a year. A full 20-30 game season might be a problem especially with all the football and rugby union teams near by.
