Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: woo on November 05, 2010, 05:58:53 PM
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Liverpool co-owner Tom Werner backs overseas game:-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/9163015.stm (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/9163015.stm)
I thought this would rear its ugly head again but it's a bit quick for the new boys to be spouting off.
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It's not if, but when.
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This guy can f**king f**k the f**k off.
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Inter-galactic 40th game next perhaps ?
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It'll be the day I give up watching professional football.
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I hope it never happens.
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It'll be the day I give up watching professional football.
me too
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Me 3
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Me 3
Ill follow lower league, Cheltenhams a good day out..
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Here we go again.
Leaving aside every single other argument, the thing is you know it'll be rigged.
Liverpool and Man Utd have got American owners and, quelle surprise, they end up playing in the US, Chelsea in Moscow, Citeh in Abu Dhabi and, er, Blues would sell out the Bird's Nest in Beijing.
Everton will play in Thailand courtesy of being sponsored by Chang Beer; Arsenal will be flown to their fixture in Dubai by Emirates.
Meanwhile Blackpool v Wigan will be played in front a flock of sheep in Ulaanbaatar.
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Hopefully it'll get the same response everywhere else. It was bloody stupid last time round, just leave it.
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The new Prince of Darkness,Richard Scudamore will be creaming himself that a chairman has supported this money making scheme.
I'm sick and tired of Sky,Talksport celebrating our English model of football like its something to behold. Last week my brother was in Berlin and went to a Hertha Berlin game,and though theyre in the second division now,there was around 40,000 there,it cost him 11 euros to get by paying on the day,you can drink in the stand,and he said the atmosphere was like nothing he's heard in England for years.
This is the module we should be aiming for,where clubs cannot be run with debt. Not seeking glory hunting supporters in the far east,for all they care the Premier only consists of 3 teams anyway.
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This guy can f**king f**k the f**k off.
Yes.
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This guy can f**king f**k the f**k off.
Succinct and to the point.
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Hope they've kept their 'YANKS OUT' banners.
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I hate the idea most of us going to Thailand to play Man U and having the whole country get really excited... about Man U.
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If this comes off Atherstone Town's attendance will go up by 1.
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Rushall Olympic +1.
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Solihull Moors for me.
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This guy can f**king f**k the f**k off.
Exactly. Precisely put Monty!
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Stupid idea.
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I'd only support Villa in cup competitions if it happened. At least the luck of the draw applies fairly in those.
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If this comes off Atherstone Town's attendance will go up by 1.
If this comes off Atherstone Town's attendance will go up by 1.
To two.
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I'll be watching Northampton Saints.
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So forget the 39th game for a minute, would there be as much uproar if one or maybe two games per season were played abroad - similar to how the NFL are doing now with the games at Wembley? The 'home' team gets financially compensated for losing a game and the season ticket holders get a reduced price. That way it affects a couple of teams a year rather than everyone.
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So forget the 39th game for a minute, would there be as much uproar if one or maybe two games per season were played abroad - similar to how the NFL are doing now with the games at Wembley? The 'home' team gets financially compensated for losing a game and the season ticket holders get a reduced price. That way it affects a couple of teams a year rather than everyone.
I hope there would.
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There'd still be the uproar, USAV. It is not any part of our football culture.
Imagine too the scenario when the one match is, say Man Utd v Fulham, in Tokyo. Fulham get a deserved draw, but come the end of the season United are pipped to the title by Chelsea by a single point. We'd never hear the end of it from Fergie et al. The title was lost due to the two points dropped because of the long flight/unfamiliar pitch/climate/hotel/etc/etc/etc/ad nauseam that United were disadvantaged by.
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There'd still be the uproar, USAV. It is not any part of our football culture.
Just to be clear I understand it's not part of the culture. I am part of it as well, I've only been over here a few years!
Having said that, I can't decide if I would still be interested in exploring the idea if I was at home with my Villa season ticket, or if I've been diluted by being away from home.
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So forget the 39th game for a minute, would there be as much uproar if one or maybe two games per season were played abroad - similar to how the NFL are doing now with the games at Wembley? The 'home' team gets financially compensated for losing a game and the season ticket holders get a reduced price. That way it affects a couple of teams a year rather than everyone.
I hope there would.
I would hope that a club like Villa would refuse to lose a 'home' game to play abroad, in the same way that the most historical teams in the NFL haven't bothered with the Wembley experiment (Chicago, Green Bay, Dallas, Pittsburgh and others). I could get over Man U or Liverpool losing an Old Trafford / Anfield game to play us in America / Japan / wherever so long as we were given a week off afterwards to recover from the trip like always happens in the NFL.
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As a football fan, I think the game is big enough and the oversea countries got their own football and international competition ie Champions League in Europe / Asia and why say Aston Villa play in Mexico for example the Mexicans got their team and league.
For NFL there is no other choice to watch American football and it is only one game a year outside USA worldwide (assuming this is correct) I like to watch it. British American Football is probably like comparing to Mansfield Town and co instead of Arsenal and Aston Villa.
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These people who put these things forward don't seem to get what football is all about
it's tribal
not a f*cking brand to be hawked about the world
bloody yanks ;)
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It will not happen for a while because resistance is still strong, as evidenced by this thread, but it will happen if things progress as they have since the inception of the Premier League, other things being equal.
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If PL is deadly serious, they could set up a team of 25 players and they play all the home games aboard and away games in UK. So the world can watch Inter United V Arsenal aboard, and we can watch Aston Villa V Inter United at home.
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No domestic competitive league game should ever be played outside the confines of the country. Not one single game, no experiment, no compromise, not now, not ever. We should not give an inch in any debate when anybody gives the merest suggestion that it should be considered. It should be made clear by all fans that if the competition is tainted in this way, there will be a full and complete boycott of attendance of all league games immediately.
The basic principles of the league competition were laid down in 1888.
Fans of all clubs should make it clear that we totally oppose this.
Fans of the original twelve founding members should be more vociferous in opposing this.
Fans of Aston Villa should be the most vociferous in opposing this.
THE SONS OF MCGREGOR.
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The new Prince of Darkness,Richard Scudamore will be creaming himself that a chairman has supported this money making scheme.
I'm sick and tired of Sky,Talksport celebrating our English model of football like its something to behold. Last week my brother was in Berlin and went to a Hertha Berlin game,and though theyre in the second division now,there was around 40,000 there,it cost him 11 euros to get by paying on the day,you can drink in the stand,and he said the atmosphere was like nothing he's heard in England for years.
This is the module we should be aiming for,where clubs cannot be run with debt. Not seeking glory hunting supporters in the far east,for all they care the Premier only consists of 3 teams anyway.
The PL is so far away from this now. I hate the way football has gone over the last 15 years. We have nothing to be proud of. Who the hell does he think he is - stick the 39th game where the sun doesn't shine.
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The new Prince of Darkness,Richard Scudamore will be creaming himself that a chairman has supported this money making scheme.
I'm sick and tired of Sky,Talksport celebrating our English model of football like its something to behold. Last week my brother was in Berlin and went to a Hertha Berlin game,and though theyre in the second division now,there was around 40,000 there,it cost him 11 euros to get by paying on the day,you can drink in the stand,and he said the atmosphere was like nothing he's heard in England for years.
This is the module we should be aiming for,where clubs cannot be run with debt. Not seeking glory hunting supporters in the far east,for all they care the Premier only consists of 3 teams anyway.
The PL is so far away from this now. I hate the way football has gone over the last 15 years. We have nothing to be proud of. Who the hell does he think he is - stick the 39th game where the sun doesn't shine.
The Premier League is streets behind the Bundesliga in every way (except they haven't got the Villa)... quality of games, stadia, atmosphere, competition and most importantly it's treatment and respect of the fans - even the armchair fans.
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The new Prince of Darkness,Richard Scudamore will be creaming himself that a chairman has supported this money making scheme.
I'm sick and tired of Sky,Talksport celebrating our English model of football like its something to behold. Last week my brother was in Berlin and went to a Hertha Berlin game,and though theyre in the second division now,there was around 40,000 there,it cost him 11 euros to get by paying on the day,you can drink in the stand,and he said the atmosphere was like nothing he's heard in England for years.
This is the module we should be aiming for,where clubs cannot be run with debt. Not seeking glory hunting supporters in the far east,for all they care the Premier only consists of 3 teams anyway.
amen to that...
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I look forward to the next Scouser supporters video as they try to get this latest joker out of their club. Do they ever learn?
As for the "39th game" (spit!), it just shows what a smokescreen this proposed "winter break" is. The big clubs want to take their circus to the Far East and they're looking for a window to do it.
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The game will destroy itself...I really don't like where it's headed at the minute. If this 39th game crap sees the light of day it will take football that little bit further removed from what it should be.
You really do get more conservative as you get older don't you?
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You really do get more conservative as you get older don't you?
NO!!!
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It'll be the day I give up watching professional football.
Why ?
I don't understand why this suggestion meets with such opposition.
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You really do get more conservative as you get older don't you?
NO!!!
You must have started life as a conservative and have become more progressive!
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It's just an utterly ludicrous proposal in its current form. How can you play one team 3 times a season and the other 18 twice? I think if the playing games abroad thing gets off the ground it'll have to be one of the standard 38 games abroad with rotation of when you lose a home game. Of course given the yo-yo nature of many clubs this presents its own difficulties.
To make it clear, I am utterly opposed to playing league games abroad but as was said in an issue of H&V once, if it makes money someone'll do it. I don't think the 39th game will happen though as I don't think even the Premier League would sabotage the integrity of their competition. Would they??
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Why ?
I don't understand why this suggestion meets with such opposition.
There speaks our contributor who is in thrall of American sports.
American sports have long since sold out TV. Indeed their formats were devised for TV companies and the advertisers.
For many of us, who perhaps naively cling to the belief that football is put on for the benefit of the paying spectators of the clubs involved, the 39th game will be the final straw in conceding that our game has in fact sold out completely to TV.
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It's just an utterly ludicrous proposal in its current form. How can you play one team 3 times a season and the other 18 twice? I think if the playing games abroad thing gets off the ground it'll have to be one of the standard 38 games abroad with rotation of when you lose a home game. Of course given the yo-yo nature of many clubs this presents its own difficulties.
To make it clear, I am utterly opposed to playing league games abroad but as was said in an issue of H&V once, if it makes money someone'll do it. I don't think the 39th game will happen though as I don't think even the Premier League would sabotage the integrity of their competition. Would they??
I really hope not. I dare say there are small parts of this some people might not mind too much, but that then starts a dangerous process where they are gradually converted to liking it. Even then the fact that ultimately the integrity of the competition would be compromised will surely win the argument.
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Me 3
Ill follow lower league, Cheltenhams a good day out..
I know I shouldn't have 2 teams but Cheltenham is my choice too.
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In response to TopDeck, football sold out to TV a long time ago. You appear to be longing for a return to an era that's gone forever.
We need to accept that those of us who actually go to matches are the minority of football fans. Its the tv viewers that are footing most of the bill for the high quality product we all clamour for. Game 39 is about attracting new tv audiences.
Whilst individual clubs may be the playthings of billionaires, the overall setup is a business. The people running the game need to seek out new markets. If that involves clubs playing an extra league game abroad, then I'm fine with that.
Most clubs travel abroad for preseason games, so why not have overseas games count?
Does anyone else on here support Game 39 or am I on my own?
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It's UKRedsox against H&V!
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It's a ridiculous concept, it has been since the day it was first brought up.
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You appear to be longing for a return to an era that's gone forever.
I don't deny it. The past may, indeed, be a foreign country, but whilst they do things differently there, it doesn't necessarily mean that all progress is good.
The people running the game need to seek out new markets.
And its talk like that which rather proves my point.
If Premier League cut their cloth according to the great wealth that they already enjoy - and more to the point, ensured that their competition was not distorted by the wealth of individual owners, there would be no need for seeking out new markets.
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Game 39
I could weep.
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It will probably happen eventually for those running the game they are never happy it's never enough money they always want more. If it happens i'm done with football it's an absolutely ridiculous idea. How on earth can you have a fair league when you play one team three times? It completely goes against the concept of league football.
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Does anyone else on here support Game 39 or am I on my own?
I think on game 39 you are.
However, I'm interested in hearing ideas for seeing competetive games played abroad, but I'm not sure in what format yet. I could see the Champion's League final being played outside of Europe before too much longer.
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Does anyone else on here support Game 39 or am I on my own?
Your probably on your own. More importantly you are completely and utterly wrong.
Theres nothing wrong with change but some things are going too far.
Rest assured many of us would stop attending any league games if the competition was tainted by just one game behing played abroad.
Check your history, check who started up the original concept of a group of clubs playing each other home and away over the course of a season.
THE SONS OF MCGREGOR
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if it happens, then i am done with football...
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Me 3
Ill follow lower league, Cheltenhams a good day out..
Is it?
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Does anyone else on here support Game 39 or am I on my own?
Your probably on your own. More importantly you are completely and utterly wrong.
Theres nothing wrong with change but some things are going too far.
Rest assured many of us would stop attending any league games if the competition was tainted by just one game behing played abroad.
Check your history, check who started up the original concept of a group of clubs playing each other home and away over the course of a season.
THE SONS OF MCGREGOR
You should start an Ultra group. That's a good name. I'm sure you can drum up lots of support. I can see the banner in the Holte now.
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Much as I hate the idea, I reckon it will happen at some stage. Might be 2 years, might be 20, but it will happen.
Let's say for arguments sake there are 500K people who attend top flight football weekly. 20% of them don't mind or want the the extra game. Leaves 400K against it. And x amount of billion world wide in favour. We all know, deep down, who is more important to football these days.
Football will continue to sell it's soul for every £ it can get up until the moment the bubble bursts.
And the vast majority of us will continue to go down the Villa regardless, and "they" know that.
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It'll be the day I give up watching professional football.
Why ?
I don't understand why this suggestion meets with such opposition.
1. We all support our club and want to see them play. Most of us have the option to travel to matches as it is a relatively short distance. For sure an away day at Newcastle or Portsmouth is a bitch to get to but if we have to go to say Moscow or Los Angeles for it it is even more of a faff.
2.Aston Villa play in Birmingham because it is our spiritual home and it is not too far from the majority of our fans. Why should this majority be put out for a glorified exhibition match?
3. If the match counts competitively it really will destroy the game. Lets say Blackpool have to play Man Utd in Sydney. Blackpool may be immediately disadvantaged by the fact that they can only afford economy class and Man United fly by private jet. Blackpool are disadvantaged by this and probably by the fact that they will have absolutely no support present. It is unfair on them.
4. What if Chelsea have to play say Newcastle instead? Newcastle are a much harder opponent than Blackpool. Why is it fair that one team get an easier match than others? What if Newcastle beating Chelsea and Blackpool losing 6-0 to Man Utd in the 39th game affects the outcome of the title? What if Ian Holloway decides not to take several of his first choice team on a long grueling flight to rest them for the next weeks relegation six pointer against Wigan at Bloomfield Road? It is completely unfair and ruins competitive spirit in the league.
In sum it is an arse-clenchingly awful travesty of a bad idea. As bad as new Coke, the decision to appoint Tommy Doc and Graham Turner combined. The game is fucked up enough without this.
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No domestic competitive league game should ever be played outside the confines of the country. Not one single game, no experiment, no compromise, not now, not ever. We should not give an inch in any debate when anybody gives the merest suggestion that it should be considered. It should be made clear by all fans that if the competition is tainted in this way, there will be a full and complete boycott of attendance of all league games immediately.
The basic principles of the league competition were laid down in 1888.
Fans of all clubs should make it clear that we totally oppose this.
Fans of the original twelve founding members should be more vociferous in opposing this.
Fans of Aston Villa should be the most vociferous in opposing this.
THE SONS OF MCGREGOR.
My feelings in a nutshell. If and when this happens I think fans should show their contempt by boycotting their team's next home game (hard I know) and go to a lower/non-league game instead (I'll be at Kidderminster Harriers). See how PL teams like playing in front of a handful of people - don't think they'll like it at all and the lost income will go some small way to redressing the balance of what they make by playing abroad.
Scudamore isn't going to go away with this especially as he now has the backing of an owner. Wonder whether Sepp Blatter will do the right thing for once and blow this idea completely out of the water
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Wonder whether Sepp Blatter will do the right thing for once and blow this idea completely out of the water
On this matter at least Blatter said the right things in 2008 when it first reared its ugly head.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7237359.stm
"This will never happen, at least as long as I am the president of Fifa."
"I support the fans 100%," he said. "If I was a fan in England I would say: 'no, please play at home and don't go and exercise your talents abroad'.
"If the plan includes official league matches then, as a fan, I would protest against this."
THE SONS OF MCGREGOR
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You appear to be longing for a return to an era that's gone forever.
I don't deny it. The past may, indeed, be a foreign country, but whilst they do things differently there, it doesn't necessarily mean that all progress is good.
The people running the game need to seek out new markets.
And its talk like that which rather proves my point.
If Premier League cut their cloth according to the great wealth that they already enjoy - and more to the point, ensured that their competition was not distorted by the wealth of individual owners, there would be no need for seeking out new markets.
In order for that to work, all leagues would have to enact the same policy. Otherwise, the best talent will just drain to the leagues that don't abide by the model (just as the best players from outside Europe come to this continent nowadays and hove the best players within Europe gravitate to England, Spain and Italy).
If just England adopted the economic model you suggest, then, as is starting to happen with Rugby Union, players will start to leave for better money elsewhere.
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Why does football have to continually seek new 'markets' (ie more money)? What's wrong with leaving the game as it is?
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My default position is that I am opposed to it.
But other sports (such as AFL) allocate a certain amount of games for a 'home' side to be played in other parts of Australia where they think they can draw more revenue.
Juventus have switched home games to other venues outside of Turin as they draw more support in south and central Italy than they do at home.
And the Yanks came over here last week to a packed out Wembley for a Gridiron football match.
I can't see the bigger clubs going for it. But if, say, a team such as Wigan or Blackpool with poor support or a smallish stadium were given the option of switching one of their games versus Man U or Liverpool to Hong Kong, Thailand or Malaysia would they go for it? If the numbers were to add up I think they would. That's effectively what it all boils down to. They could go the route of trying to sell themselves as pioneers. But really and truthfully they'd just be selling themselves.
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Why does football have to continually seek new 'markets' (ie more money)? What's wrong with leaving the game as it is?
Playing devils advocate, couldn't it be argued that if the game never evolved, then William McGregor wouldn't have sent out that letter?
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Why does football have to continually seek new 'markets' (ie more money)? What's wrong with leaving the game as it is?
Playing devils advocate, couldn't it be argued that if the game never evolved, then William McGregor wouldn't have sent out that letter?
McGregor was interested in developing the sport. He knew the importance of healthy competition, hence sharing gate money. Game 39 has no driving factor other than to make even more money for the Premier League.
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It's back on the agenda. At least the principle of playing one round of the original 38 premiership matches in some far flung corner of 'our' target market. This time acceptability talks are based on the giving up of FA Cup replays and two legged League Cup semi-finals.
I despair.
Can't do links but it's on page 53 of today's i.
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It's the most pointless idea i've ever heard. I can't believe the F.A are trying it's best to kill it's own game.
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I'm in favour of getting rid of FA Cup replays and two legged semis.
Playing games abroad can fuck off though. Glory-hunters only care about four or five teams. I've no interest in travelling ten thousand miles to lose in front of 80,000 Man U twats.
We can do that perfectly well in Manchester, thanks.
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I'm in favour of getting rid of FA Cup replays and two legged semis.
Two-legged semi's yes, although that just means the LC semi's will also then be played at Wembley.
Not FA Cup replays though, getting an away draw deserves a chance of having a go at your own ground.
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Agree to an extent but I think there is too much emphasis placed on getting a draw. How many times in recent years has a team's fans done a pitch invasion after a draw? Just seems a bit sad.
It's better for paying spectators and for a televised audience to have it settled on the day. It's also better that big games are settled on a weekend when people can attend without having to take a day off work/school.
Plus the big clubs nearly always seem to win the replays. I think having extra-time and penalties would make the competition more exciting and produce more upsets.
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In my view World cups, FA cups and Champions leagues won on penalties don't count,
all big games especially finals should be won by playing the game properly and scoring goals
I would have no penalty shoot outs, just keep playing replays Untill there is an eventual winner
That's the way it used to be in the FA cup etc, and that's how it should be now
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You're mad. Penalty shoot-outs are ace.
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In my view World cups, FA cups and Champions leagues won on penalties don't count,
all big games especially finals should be won by playing the game properly and scoring goals
I would have no penalty shoot outs, just keep playing replays Untill there is an eventual winner
That's the way it used to be in the FA cup etc, and that's how it should be now
Amen. Two sides bashing themselves senseless over replays was great stuff.
These were the days: http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/features/rewind_look_back/11082547.print/
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Chelsea v Man U in Sierra Leone would be good.
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It really only works for a handful of clubs in this league. The Manc bastards, a couple of the London wankers, and Liverpool. No other club will garner any interest from overseas fans to warrant it. There's little point doing it in strong European leagues either.
I think on a club to club basis the better idea is to arrange friendly games in territories like Asia.
A 39th game for the Premier League just won't work.
It's the worst plan since Abe Lincoln said to his wife, "I'm sick of hanging around the house, lets catch a show."
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I don't think we should be playing abroad. Football would be a lot stronger if we helped to develop the local associations in those places instead. The custodians of our game have lost sight of their purpose, to be custodians. Now they're more like agents for the big clubs.
The devaluing of the FA Cup at every opportunity really annoys me and doing it so the top 4 or 5 clubs can pull away even further from the rest annoys me doubly so. Replays can make good money for small clubs that are struggling to survive, I think losing them would be yet another step in the wrong direction.
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I was going to suggest Islamic State host that one.
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And the mid winter break is also back on the agenda. So it will help England by having "refreshed" players for the end of season World/European events. Ha Ha. Wonder which will be the first club to arrange a friendly in Doha in the break? Just giving their players some sunshine mind - my a**e.
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Agree to an extent but I think there is too much emphasis placed on getting a draw. How many times in recent years has a team's fans done a pitch invasion after a draw? Just seems a bit sad.
It's better for paying spectators and for a televised audience to have it settled on the day. It's also better that big games are settled on a weekend when people can attend without having to take a day off work/school.
Plus the big clubs nearly always seem to win the replays. I think having extra-time and penalties would make the competition more exciting and produce more upsets.
I've been part of one of those sad pitch invasions, when Tamuff drew at Stoke, it was great. Yeah we lost the replay on penalties, but it was in front of a packed out Lamb with live radio commentary and TV crews from all over, Stoke could have sold their 800 tickets four or five times over.
I think a game going into extra-time favours the big clubs, they tend to be fitter and, well, more professional. And to battle to a 90 minute draw and then miss out on a huge pay day and go out in extra-time or on penalties would be gutting.
Burton Albion practically bankrolled their climb into League football by getting a draw against Man Utd.
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I don't think we should be playing abroad. Football would be a lot stronger if we helped to develop the local associations in those places instead. The custodians of our game have lost sight of their purpose, to be custodians. Now they're more like agents for the big clubs.
The devaluing of the FA Cup at every opportunity really annoys me and doing it so the top 4 or 5 clubs can pull away even further from the rest annoys me doubly so. Replays can make good money for small clubs that are struggling to survive, I think losing them would be yet another step in the wrong direction.
I think replays play into the hands of the big four or five. More games=more advantage to the clubs with massive squads. Extra time and penalties is more of a lottery than a fresh ninety minutes meaning more chance of the bigger clubs being eliminated if replays are abolished.
As for small clubs earning money from replays, that's true. But it's always struck me as wrong that if, say, Tamworth get a penalty against Man U, a minute from time with the score at The Lamb 0-0, they'd be better off to miss than score. The site of fans invading the pitch just because they've drawn and earned the right to be thrashed in a replay always makes me uneasy.
At a lower level, it is obvious that replays favour the bigger (full-time) clubs who don't have to worry about getting their staff time off work to attend the replay. Even at a higher level, the smaller club can often compete for one game but expecting them to repeat the feat twice is asking too much, usually.
I understand reluctance to lose a traditional part of the game, but I feel replays aren't worth keeping. With the police ensuring that replays are never played in the same week and UEFA's decision to spread the Champions League last sixteen across four weeks meaning they can often be played many weeks after the first game, they've lost the magic they may have had.
Scrap replays.
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We really shouldn't be doing anymore to help out the big clubs, which in the end, is all this would be doing. Same with scrapping replays etc.
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Explain how scrapping replays would help the big clubs?
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They can stick their 39th game where the sun don't shine.
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nalties is more of a lottery than a fresh ninety minutes meaning more chance of the bigger clubs being eliminated if replays are abolished.
As for small clubs earning money from replays, that's true. But it's always struck me as wrong that if, say, Tamworth get a penalty against Man U, a minute from time with the score at The Lamb 0-0, they'd be better off to miss than score. The site of fans invading the pitch just because they've drawn and earned the right to be thrashed in a replay always makes me uneasy.
But you are picking an extreme hypothetical scenario, and anyway, the resultant publicity for Tamworth knocking out Man Utd would probably be worth as much as a replay at Mould Trafford. Special shirt sponsorships, practically guaranteed live match in the next round, huge upsurge in crowds even if only temporarily etc. etc.
Anyway, what;s the difference between a pitch invasion in your scenario and a pitch invasion when your 0-0 draw against Walsall has just about kept your team in League One because Colchester lost. Every fan finds things to celebrate about even when they support teams that generally do fuck all for their whole existence.
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We really shouldn't be doing anymore to help out the big clubs, which in the end, is all this would be doing. Same with scrapping replays etc.
Are there stats to support the premise that 'big clubs' go through more often when there's no replay ?
I'd have thought that the opposite was true but would like to see the figures.
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Explain how scrapping replays would help the big clubs?
I think the point is that they don't want annoying FA Cup replays to interfere with their Champions League preparations and the like, CD. They already complain about the number of games they have to play.
Your point about them having multiple squads anyway is valid, mind.
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Explain how scrapping replays would help the big clubs?
Big clubs barely want to even play in the league cup anymore let alone having to have a second leg, or in the case of the FA cup having to arrange a replay somewhere. In fact if the option was seen as more acceptable I'm sure a couple of the top four clubs would actually consider pulling out of the FA Cup.
But for a Championship club, right down to non-league, a big tie can be the difference between a bit of financial breathing space, or another year of desperately balancing the books.
Replays don't bother me much particularly as we very rarely have anything to play for, and in the rounds where replays would come into effect, we'd not be in immediate danger of exhausting ourselves during a critical relegation scrap.
I think mid-season breaks would only be to the benefit of big clubs too, even though they have the squads to cope with a season. Inevitably the likes of Utd would start making money in overseas friendlies anyway. The rest of us will wait around twiddling our thumbs.
That said if I have to watch us place Bradford twice in a week again. I think I'd go bloody nuts.
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Celebrating staying in a league is entirely different.
You mention the resultant publicity if Tamworth beat Man U. While very unlikely, that is far more likely to happen after one game and a penalty shoot-out than it is after two games.
My earliest (non-Villa) memories of the FA Cup are of brilliant FA Cup games followed by crap replays which the favourites won easily. Not always, but more often than if the games had gone to extra time and penalties I reckon.
Big clubs are more likely to "take their eye of the ball" and rest players and come unstuck in a one-off tie than over two games.
One off ties would also reinvigorate the competition as a televisual format, which in turn would lead to more people taking the competition seriously and hopefully getting better crowds.
I'm really struggling to think of the last brilliant FA Cup replay I watched.
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By scrapping replays you'd be denying smaller clubs the chance to make money which in some cases would keep them going and it's players the chance to play on a bigger stage and at a bigger ground. For some it's a once in a lifetime opportunity and something they never forget long after they've retired. Besides, isn't that what the early stages of the F.A Cup is all about or do we want to kill that off as well?
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Celebrating staying in a league is entirely different.
You mention the resultant publicity if Tamworth beat Man U. While very unlikely, that is far more likely to happen after one game and a penalty shoot-out than it is after two games.
My earliest (non-Villa) memories of the FA Cup are of brilliant FA Cup games followed by crap replays which the favourites won easily. Not always, but more often than if the games had gone to extra time and penalties I reckon.
Big clubs are more likely to "take their eye of the ball" and rest players and come unstuck in a one-off tie than over two games.
One off ties would also reinvigorate the competition as a televisual format, which in turn would lead to more people taking the competition seriously and hopefully getting better crowds.
I'm really struggling to think of the last brilliant FA Cup replay I watched.
Such is the state of the FA Cup these days you'd probably be hard pressed to think of too many decent ties in the last 10-15 years full stop, aside from plucky scrappers trying to make a game of it against an indifferent Premiership side that doesn't seem to bothered. Which is a shame.
The last final wasn't too shabby though to be fair. Despite the unfortunate result of Arsenal winning a trophy.
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I'd also scrap replays. At the highest level - well international fotoball anyway - you don't have replays so domestically yopu want your players playing the same game as they would at international level. Therefore, have a mindset more atune to settling it on the night.
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I'm really struggling to think of the last brilliant FA Cup replay I watched.
It's not about what you enjoyed watching whilst sitting on a sofa. If a club like Forest Green held Liverpool to a draw at home, then surely they deserve their chance of another crack at Anfield?
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By scrapping replays you'd be denying smaller clubs the chance to make money which in some cases would keep them going and it's players the chance to play on a bigger stage and at a bigger ground. For some it's a once in a lifetime opportunity and something they never forget long after they've retired. Besides, isn't that what the early stages of the F.A Cup is all about or do we want to kill that off as well?
They could make more money... by winning after extra time or penalties and going through to the next round. The more games a team wins, statistically, the more likely they are to play at a big ground eventually.
That said, any club which needs big FA Cup ties to keep them going has a bloody awful business model and will likely go tits up at some point anyway. For instance, Scarborough went bust within a few years of playing (and taking the lead) at Stamford Bridge.
I'd say the early rounds of the FA Cup are "all about" non-league teams trying to beat bigger clubs, not drawing with them.
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I'm really struggling to think of the last brilliant FA Cup replay I watched.
It's not about what you enjoyed watching whilst sitting on a sofa. If a club like Forest Green held Liverpool to a draw at home, then surely they deserve their chance of another crack at Anfield?
Let's switch the argument.
Why do Liverpool, having failed to beat a non-league club over ninety minutes, get the luxury of having another crack when they will probably win easily, rather than having to face the uncertainty of extra time and penalties and the possibility of national humiliation and hilarity for us all?
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Something I thought I would never type
Mick Quinn talks sense............
"Money raised from 39th game should to grassroots football"
if you haven't signed the @savegrassroots campaign...............sign now
Link here
www.epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/66835
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Maybe there could be a presumption of gate receipts in favour of the club from the lower league?
So if you're going to Anfield and do get a draw, you won't miss out on the replay, because your percentage take of match receipts compensates you for that.
Equally, if you do draw Liverpool at home, you keep 100% of gate receipts instead of the split that is in place now.
No two legged semi finals in the League Cup could suit us, as we will likely get semi-final football back at Villa Park.
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Something I thought I would never type
Mick Quinn talks sense............
"Money raised from 39th game should to grassroots football"
if you haven't signed the @savegrassroots campaign...............sign now
Link here
www.epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/66835
The trouble is that still pre-supposes that Game 39 goes ahead... which I think would be disastrous.
No thanks.
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On International TV rights from the BBC:
'North Korea and Albania are the only countries not to have some form of rights agreement in place'
If the 'big' four are so keen to expand their customer base maybe they could play each other over there. Now that would be a SUPERSUNDAY
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Surprised Albania doesn't show games. How much Norman Wisdom can you watch?
I assume they just find someway of watching games provided by one of their numerous neighbouring countries so, in reality, North Korea is likely to be the only place that really never shows Premier League games.
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Central Iraq or the Turkey / Syria border should also be options.
John Terry could give a pre-match speech on racial and religious tolerance.
Jose Mourinho could be in trouble though if ISIL find out that he thinks that he's the special one.
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Surprised Albania doesn't show games. How much Norman Wisdom can you watch?
I assume they just find someway of watching games provided by one of their numerous neighbouring countries so, in reality, North Korea is likely to be the only place that really never shows Premier League games.
I reckon you are probably right. I met an Albanian bloke here once who was a Man Utd fan.
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Regarding the replays debate. If you did do away with them then wouldn't a lot of non-league/lower league teams seek to switch the venue to maximise receipts in the one-off game?
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Regarding the replays debate. If you did do away with them then wouldn't a lot of non-league/lower league teams seek to switch the venue to maximise receipts in the one-off game?
I thought that they changed the rules a few years ago to stop this.
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....and what's the point of introducing a mid-season break at a time when clubs routinely embark on overseas summer tours in June/July? The game's gone mad.
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Something I thought I would never type
Mick Quinn talks sense............
"Money raised from 39th game should to grassroots football"
if you haven't signed the @savegrassroots campaign...............sign now
Link here
www.epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/66835
The trouble is that still pre-supposes that Game 39 goes ahead... which I think would be disastrous.
No thanks.
The savegrass roots campaign is completely independent of the 39th game idea
The e-petition has been running for sometime and should (IMHO) be supported by every football supporter in the country
http://www.savegrassroots.co.uk/
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Ah sorry, didn't bother to click the link as the Mick Quinn quote you provided above made me assume it was linked to the 39th (or is it 38th now?) game.
Apologies.
EDITED to add: now signed.
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I'm all in favour of supporting grass-roots football and that looks like a worthwhile initiative.
The problem I have with Mick Quinn's suggestion is that the Premier League already have more than enough money to support grass-roots football properly. They don't need a 39th game to be able to do so.
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Regarding the replays debate. If you did do away with them then wouldn't a lot of non-league/lower league teams seek to switch the venue to maximise receipts in the one-off game?
I thought that they changed the rules a few years ago to stop this.
I think the only way it would change is if the police deemed a stadium unsuitable. Not sure in those circumstances whether they would be allowed to switch to the away venue or would have to play at a nearby ground.
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"The potential impact on the value of season tickets, which would see fans of half the Premier League clubs missing out on a home match, could be enormous.
"Inevitably some of the fixtures to be moved will be either local derbies or other high-profile fixtures.
"The FSF is against the proposals as they have been reported, and will be consulting with Premier League fans' groups and individuals to formulate an appropriate response."
Read more at http://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/fans-group-oppose-overseas-premier-league-match-plans#FRBpWmB0zyfqw2dg.99
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I remember watching us on the telly in the Asian Cup. Crowd was about 2% Villa and 1% Blackburn (none of them looked Oriental so I'm guessing they'd all flown over or were ex-pats), about 90% Chelsea fans and the rest fans of Man U/Arsenal, etc, who wanted Chelsea to lose.
If they have to do it, just send over the Sky Four-Six clubs and have them play each other. Fans in Beijing have no interest in watching Villa, Newcastle or Everton, let alone Stoke or Leicester.
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Scudamore and his cronies absolutely beggar belief. Having had his 39th game nonsense blown out of the water he comes back with an even more ridiculous idea of having one of the existing fixtures played elsewhere. It's a pity fans can't get together and organise a mass boycott of one weekend's fixtures to show him what it means when you want to pursue the foreign TV buck at the expense of real fans. What with this and the likelihood of an enforced winter break to accommodate the corrupt Qatar 2022 World Cup bid, people running the game now have completely lost touch with reality. This, allied with the the iron law of oligarchy for the top 4 clubs, Sky dictating when games are played, players wages sprawling out of control for even average players, the downgrading of the most historic cup competition in the world, all combine to make me fucking hate everything about modern football. I sometimes wish I wasn't hooked on Villa so I could just walk away
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Rather than scrap replays, bring back unlimited replays!
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Statement from the Football Supporters Federation. FSF (http://www.fsf.org.uk/latest-news/view/fsf-statement-on-overseas-premier-league-fixtures)
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If they have to do it, just send over the Sky Four-Six clubs and have them play each other. Fans in Beijing have no interest in watching Villa, Newcastle or Everton, let alone Stoke or Leicester.
I agree - however, If this crap is just a way to entice more foreign billionaires to buy (and invest in) BPL clubs, they'll have to send the clubs that potentially can be bought as well.
Maybe clubs can tick a "preferred continent" box on the travel form.
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Statement from the Football Supporters Federation. FSF (http://www.fsf.org.uk/latest-news/view/fsf-statement-on-overseas-premier-league-fixtures)
I applaud the statement but I don't think Scudamore and his pals at Sky give a damn!
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Even forgetting all the obvious reasons for being against an extra game, how can they make the extra game fair?
Team A plays Chavski and gets twatted.
Team B gets Burnley and wins.
Team B stays up by 2 points. That's not going to cause any problems is it.
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This isn't about the 39th game anymore. They want to play one of the 'normal' 38 games abroad now.
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That will teach me not to have bothered looking at what they were proposing this time round. It's still a shit idea though.
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Yeah, it's still shit. You still have the scenario whereby Team A plays Man U at home and gets a credible draw, Team B plays Man U at "home" in Beijing in front of 80,000 Man U fans, Team A stays up by a point.
If they have to do it, top four or six clubs, each plays two games abroad so losing one home and one away game.
Or an even better idea... just forget the whole thing.
Part of me wonders if this is a smokescreen and they are going to slip in something slightly less controversial while everyone is arguing about the 38/9th game.
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One bonus, if we have to play away to Crystal Palace in Melbourne, at least it will be easier to get to.
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Fans need to take a united approach to this.
Collectively, as happened last time, the clubs have to take notice. This is the one of the few matters that would ever lead me to boycott the Villa.
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That said, any club which needs big FA Cup ties to keep them going has a bloody awful business model and will likely go tits up at some point anyway. For instance, Scarborough went bust within a few years of playing (and taking the lead) at Stamford Bridge.
It's not always about keeping going, it can be the difference between mid table obscurity in the Northern Premier League and an assault on Conference North. That might seem nothing to a Premier League fan but it's a great deal to a fan of, say, Stafford Rangers.
Or, as with my previous Burton Albion example, the catalyst to get a club into the League.
Anyway, why is it any different for fans of a really small club to celebrate a draw against a massively bigger club than it is to merely stay in a league you have been shite in for most of the season? You take your "victories" where you can unless you support a club that wins all the bloody time!
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That said, any club which needs big FA Cup ties to keep them going has a bloody awful business model and will likely go tits up at some point anyway. For instance, Scarborough went bust within a few years of playing (and taking the lead) at Stamford Bridge.
It's not always about keeping going, it can be the difference between mid table obscurity in the Northern Premier League and an assault on Conference North. That might seem nothing to a Premier League fan but it's a great deal to a fan of, say, Stafford Rangers.
Or, as with my previous Burton Albion example, the catalyst to get a club into the League.
Anyway, why is it any different for fans of a really small club to celebrate a draw against a massively bigger club than it is to merely stay in a league you have been shite in for most of the season? You take your "victories" where you can unless you support a club that wins all the bloody time!
My point was that they'd have a better chance of achieving actual victories, rather than celebrating gallant draws, if the match went to Extra Time and penalties, than if it went to a replay.
Get through, have another money-spinning tie next up.
Plus, a big replay is all well and good, but if you're some schoolkid, and it's away, you can't go.
Midweek football is, generally, shite.
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I'd fancy that the majority games that went to extra time would be won by the 'big club' anyway because their fitness levels would be superior, even more so if they are playing a part time club.
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I'd fancy that the majority games that went to extra time would be won by the 'big club' anyway because their fitness levels would be superior, even more so if they are playing a part time club.
I think sheer adrenalin can often enable the smaller club to thrive in such circumstances, especially as the big club may have taken the game for granted and rested a few.
In the replay, it's asking a bit much for the smaller club to be able to motivate themselves for another 90-120 minutes against superior and fitter opposition. As for the part-time business, that'll impact even more if it goes to a replay due to the fact players will have to rush to the game straight from work or sometimes not be able to play at all if they can't get time off.
The "fun" aspect of replays is now ruined too by virtue of the fact that they have to be played at least ten days after the original event and clubs have had a league game or two in the meantime and forgotten all about the cup.
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I'd fancy that the majority games that went to extra time would be won by the 'big club' anyway because their fitness levels would be superior, even more so if they are playing a part time club.
I think sheer adrenalin can often enable the smaller club to thrive in such circumstances, especially as the big club may have taken the game for granted and rested a few.
In the replay, it's asking a bit much for the smaller club to be able to motivate themselves for another 90-120 minutes against superior and fitter opposition. As for the part-time business, that'll impact even more if it goes to a replay due to the fact players will have to rush to the game straight from work or sometimes not be able to play at all if they can't get time off.
The clubs themselves seem to prefer it. Plus there's the factor that a lot of non-league fans are former supporters of the 'big' clubs who got pissed off with modern football. Replays are a part of that.
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the old jug eared silver fox speaks...
Gary Lineker
BBC Sport
Football
Reemergence of plans to play PL games overseas is a rotten one. Need to make game more affordable for fans not less. Disrespectful avarice!
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It would be rare for an employer not to give time off for a big cup game. And watch how often a non league club is under siege towards the end of a 90 minute game because they are fucked. The extra half hour would do most in. You only have to see how knackered some PL teams look towards the end of a 90 minute game against a 'big' club.
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Fuck off Scudamore you woman hating ******!
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That's just Villa... no team ever looks knackered against us!
I still say it's easier to motivate yourself for an extra thirty minutes than it is for another ninety. It also means the paying public get to see the victor of the contest they've paid to see. Certainly the paying public don't seem overly-impressed with recent FA Cups if the attendances are any guide. More penalty shoot-outs makes for more drama which equates to more interest from broadcasters. So the smaller clubs could be compensated for any loss in revenue by increased prize money or TV funds if their tie is picked for live coverage.
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Funny this has come out the same time Man Utd want to go around the world midweek.
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A change that may prove beneficial, and hopefully compensate for the lack of replays. I've also thought for a while that the Second Round needs changing.
So... all Premier League clubs enter at Round Three. All Championship clubs now have to enter at Round Two. The remaining League teams and qualifiers enter in Round One.
The upshot of this is that now seventy-two non-League teams enter the First Round, rather than the current thirty-two.
It would also mean a greater number of League One/League Two/Non-League clubs would still be alive in Round Three assuming at least a smattering of Championship clubs got punted out.
So, clubs wouldn't be able to have replays, but they would have a greater chance of getting a glamorous tie, or more, as they'd have a greater chance of progressing.
Non-League clubs get a better chance of progression and a cash windfall, Leagues One-Two likewise. The Second Round gets a fresh impetus with the arrival of the likes of Dirty Leeds and other fallen giants into the competition. Television gets a better spectacle due to the increased number of penalty shoot-outs and I get to stay in of a midweek and save some money as we won't be having a replay.
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Anyway... while I'm against the 38th Game idea, I was bored, so did a simulation of what it might look like using a random number generator of t'internet. I'd be happy with our draw, but I doubt it would be a sell-out.
SATURDAY
Match 1 – Melbourne Cricket Ground (100,024), Melbourne, Australia - 2000 Local Time, 0900 UK
Manchester City vs Sunderland
Match 2 – International Stadium Yokohama (72,327), Yokohama, Japan – 2100 Local Time, 1200 UK
Liverpool vs Everton
Match 3 – Salt Lake Stadium (120,000), Kolkata, India – 2030 Local Time, 1500 UK
Southampton vs Leicester City
Match 4 – Soccer City (94,736), Johannesburg, South Africa – 2000 Local Time, 1800 UK
Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa
Match 5 – Rose Bowl (92,542), Pasadena, USA, 1300 Local Time 2100 UK
Stoke City vs West Bromwich Albion
SUNDAY
Match 6 – Olympic Stadium (69,950), Seoul, South Korea – 1800 Local Time, 0900 UK
Arsenal vs West Ham United
Match 7 – Beijing National Stadium (80,000), Beijing, China, 2000 Local Time, 1200 UK
Swansea City vs Hull City
Match 8 – Croke Park (82,300), Dublin, Ireland, 1500 Local Time, 1500 UK
Manchester United vs Newcastle United
Match 9 – Khalifa International Stadium (68,030), Doha, Qatar, 2100 Local Time, 1800 UK
Tottenham Hotspur vs Chelsea
Match 10 – Maracana Stadium (74,738), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1900 Local Time, 2100 UK
Burnley vs Queens Park Rangers
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I would rather drink in the pubs around the Sty than in Joberg! Could get a bit dicy!
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We could always play it at Ellis Park instead but it would take ages trying to explain to our President Emeritus that they hadn't named the ground after him.
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Anyway... while I'm against the 38th Game idea, I was bored, so did a simulation of what it might look like using a random number generator of t'internet.
I love how L.A., Rio and Beijing got really crap matches- that could be the best evidence against the idea.
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I will say that I am very much in favour of Man United, Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool fucking off into some cooperate, half and half scarf, money spinning wet dream of a league and leaving the rest of us alone.
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You know for a fact that Man Ure, Citeh, Chavski, Arsenal, Liverpool wont lose a home game, it will be teams like Villa, Palace, Southampton, West Ham who lose a home game
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Presumably they would have to vote on it? Why would the 13-14 less glamorous clubs vote for a proposal that leaves them at a disadvantage.
The Premier League would need to have a fairly convincing plan of how it was going to make money for everyone to persuade them to vote it through.
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Football is dead isn't it?
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Football is dead isn't it?
It just smells a bit funny.
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Football is dead isn't it?
I know we all keep saying this all the time at the moment about all sorts of football related annoyances but I think if this one happened that quite genuinely would be me done with football.
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I hate the idea. However, I'd be interested to know from one of our contributors interested in American sport what supporters of NFL franchises feel when one of their "home" games is switched to Wembley; or - more parochially - how rugby league fans feel about the "Magic" weekends when the whole of the Super League decamps to one stadium.
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Would season ticket holders get the match tickets included...
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Would season ticket holders get the match tickets included...
And free coach travel to the game...
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I will say that I am very much in favour of Man United, Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool fucking off into some cooperate, half and half scarf, money spinning wet dream of a league and leaving the rest of us alone.
I agree Sir Ads!
Your most significant, most positive and inspiring statement as an ex-manager-cum-pundit/expert!
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Found this story about the Jacksonville Jaguars' decision to play at Wembley. Their owner sounds like a right twat.
Playing an annual game in London will reduce season-ticket prices by 10 percent, possibly making the remaining package a more affordable and enticing option.
(http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/8289496/jacksonville-jaguars-play-four-home-games-london)
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Many years ago when the idea of a breakaway European Super-League was first suggested I was totally against it. Now, I wouldn't be that bothered if it did happen.
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I'd love if it the Skywank 5 fucked off for good to a European Super League. And if they ever want to come back they have to start at the bottom of the football pyramid.
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What do Scudamore and Alex Salmond have in common?
They will keep coming back till they get their own way.
Tossers
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In relation to the "Magic weekend" in Rugby League, this is an additional match to the season - and is usually a derby. It is different in that the League leaders are not the champions at the end of the season, there is a play off series of knock out matches which determines the Grand Final winners who are then regarded as champions.
On another note, I see there is a move afoot to set up "competitive" matches abroad in pre-season so that the top clubs can tap into their world wide audience. Wasn't there 80k at a match Liverpool played and over 100k for the Man U v Real Madrid match both in the US this pre-season?
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OS News: Leicester game switched
Villa's Barclays Premier League home game against Leicester City has been moved to The Sports City Stadium in Dubai
This mouth watering clash against the Foxes has been switched for our football family friends in The Middle East.
The game is included with your season ticket and flights are bookable through the ticket office with fares from only £399
Those supporters unfortunate enough not to be able to afford the trip, can basically go fuck themselves.
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One advantage of playing abroad: we might be able to recover some of the footballs we lost when Tonev was playing for us.
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Many years ago when the idea of a breakaway European Super-League was first suggested I was totally against it. Now, I wouldn't be that bothered if it did happen.
I think by the time the next TV deal is being discussed, there'll be more chatter about it. Seems inevitable.
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Scudamore and his cronies absolutely beggar belief. Having had his 39th game nonsense blown out of the water he comes back with an even more ridiculous idea of having one of the existing fixtures played elsewhere. It's a pity fans can't get together and organise a mass boycott of one weekend's fixtures to show him what it means when you want to pursue the foreign TV buck at the expense of real fans. What with this and the likelihood of an enforced winter break to accommodate the corrupt Qatar 2022 World Cup bid, people running the game now have completely lost touch with reality. This, allied with the the iron law of oligarchy for the top 4 clubs, Sky dictating when games are played, players wages sprawling out of control for even average players, the downgrading of the most historic cup competition in the world, all combine to make me fucking hate everything about modern football. I sometimes wish I wasn't hooked on Villa so I could just walk away
CJ, you have written my thoughts exactly.
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It would start with one game, then become two, three, etc.
The day they introduce this is the day football - at least top flight football in England - ceases to become what it once was and just becomes a circus.
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Many years ago when the idea of a breakaway European Super-League was first suggested I was totally against it. Now, I wouldn't be that bothered if it did happen.
I think by the time the next TV deal is being discussed, there'll be more chatter about it. Seems inevitable.
European Super League won't happen. It's not in the interests of the likes of the English clubs, Bayern Munich and Real/Barca to allow other clubs access to the same sort of money they have. In a pan-European competition, the likes of Ajax, Porto, Celtic, Zenit St Petersburg, Galatasaray and so on would be able to compete for the World's top players on a fairly equal footing. There's no way the current domineering leagues in Europe would allow that.
I can see some sort of supra-national leagues below Champions League level happening though. There was already talk of a joint Czech-Slovak League and a similar one for clubs from Russia/Ukraine (although I assume that has now been sidelined, for obvious reasons).
I can foresee maybe a joint Belgian/Dutch League and perhaps similar leagues for Scandinavia and Austria/Switzerland.
Wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing, IMO. Might make those clubs able to demand more for their TV rights and make them more competitive in the Champions League. Seeing as Villa have no intention of ever qualifying for it, I want anything that makes it more difficult for scummy clubs like Chavski and Manure to win it.
Regarding the actual European Super League though, I just can't see it. They've been going on about it for some time, and it never happens...
"The scene is almost set for new achievements by the Villa. Never before has the future held such glittering possibilities. The F.A. Cup, the League Championship (long, long overdue), the European Cup and perhaps, in the not so distant future, membership of a European Super League."
"Aston Villa" - Peter Morris (1961)
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I think we just to need face the fact the English football is entirely money driven and run by people who have little interest in fans who actually attend the games. If it has taken this overseas game idea to make you realise this then where have you been hiding in the last 20 years?
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There is lots that has gone on since Sky invented football that is shit but it is a combination of those factors that make modern football crap.
This is the first proposal in that time where a line in the sand seems to have been crossed with supporters.
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There is lots that has gone on since Sky invented football that is shit but it is a combination of those factors that make modern football crap.
This is the first proposal in that time where a line in the sand seems to have been crossed with supporters.
I agree, CL.
For me, who loathes much of what the Premier League has done and stands for, they cross the Rubicon with this proposal.
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I'm assuming the clubs would be consulted before this was introduced so can anyone tell me who to email at Villa Park to ask that they don't vote for it?
Don't say Nicola Keye...
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I travel a 240 mile round trip to home games, if this is a starter then with all the changes to dates and timings for games that already strain my love of football(not the Villa you understand) then I will probably give up my season ticket.
It's just too much about the money and not the fans or the game anymore. :(
UTV
The Doc
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If it happens, I will bid you all adieu and find another way to spend my weekends.
Scudamore can shit off.
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Changing the subject slightly, I was reading in the Daily Mail yesterday how Monday night TV games are affecting away attendances. Apparently, Premiership clubs are given £500k (i'm not sure if that's each) to help subsidise fans who travel and seemed to proudly announce that Chelsea only charged their fans £10 for the official travel to a Monday night game at Burnley. A club as rich as that and despite being given a grant couldn't even make it free like we sometimes do.
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One bonus, if we have to play away to Crystal Palace in Melbourne, at least it will be easier to get to.
i'm sure Damo70 would be right behind that proposal!
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One bonus, if we have to play away to Crystal Palace in Melbourne, at least it will be easier to get to.
i'm sure Damo70 would be right behind that proposal!
As it happens Melbourne is my favourite city in the world. We would still lose though.
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One bonus, if we have to play away to Crystal Palace in Melbourne, at least it will be easier to get to.
i'm sure Damo70 would be right behind that proposal!
As it happens Melbourne is my favourite city in the world. We would still lose though.
For some, I was home by 545 last season!
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Inter-galactic 40th game next perhaps ?
Yep. It's so wrong doesn't even bear discussion. Greedy t***s.
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I think at least three active theatres of war should be included in the venues, say Aleppo, Kabul and the Crimea but only after Scudamore had personally checked out the lie of the land carrying a large union jack. In the event of a SNAFU the tabloids could blame a Scud missile.
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This is like an unpopular tax rise. You leak it in December and everyone rounds on it. Nothing is released or said officially by the govt and it dies a death. A couple of months later its leaked with slightly more information and to more catcalls the govt announce they are looking at a whole range of taxation and policy areas. Come summer the issue is dropped into dispatches every now and then. Come the autumn budget when the tax rise is announced everyone shrugs saying, "well, we knew it was coming". Wear 'em down, son, wear 'em down.
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I don't agree with your assessment.
This is, as has been aptly described, the Rubicon for a lot of supporters. If its crossed, then I don't intend to shrug my shoulders, I intend to stop going to the Villa altogether.
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well yes and now. i won't stop following Villa whichever division they were in. And the 39th game isn't devised for the likes of us. I wouldn't mind seeing the bigger clubs sod off anyway, but as has been said it's unlikely to happen.
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My younger son tried to raise the issues associated with the Qatar World Cup at the Labour Party conference. He was advised that every Premiership club was on the Qatar gravy train and resistance would make no difference. The 39th game will be exactly the same.
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Fans can make a difference. They can't push this through without a vote of club chairmen. Fans can put pressure on said chairmen to vote against.
You might think they won't listen, but recent history North of the border suggests otherwise. When Rangers broke the rules, and got into huge debt spending money they didn't have, they applied for readmittance to the top flight as a Newco. Pretty much all SPL chairmen were going to vote for this but after huge pressure and threats of season ticket boycotts they caved in and all (with the exception of Kilmarnock, I think) voted not to let Rangers in.
Supporter power in action.
No reason why English fans can't behave likewise and force their clubs' owners to listen.
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I can assure you The Trust would man the barricades if we wanted to sign up to this drivel.
At least it gave me something to write about for the next H+V. I had forgotten about that wanker Scudamore.
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Apologies if this has been posted already.
The Bundesliga would never consider playing matches overseas because it would not want to alienate fans who watch their teams “through rain and shine”, the German league’s chief executive, Christian Seifert, said. (http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/oct/09/bundesliga-matches-overseas-would-not-consider)
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Give this the green light and where would it stop? Within 15 years half your games would be played in the city of the highest bidder.
Opening 3 home games in Brisbane, Buenos Aires and Baku.
Away to the Olbiyun. In Boston, MA.
Fuck right off.
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I don't think I could take the endless "Bostin'" puns if we played West Brom there.
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Fans can make a difference. They can't push this through without a vote of club chairmen. Fans can put pressure on said chairmen to vote against.
You might think they won't listen, but recent history North of the border suggests otherwise. When Rangers broke the rules, and got into huge debt spending money they didn't have, they applied for readmittance to the top flight as a Newco. Pretty much all SPL chairmen were going to vote for this but after huge pressure and threats of season ticket boycotts they caved in and all (with the exception of Kilmarnock, I think) voted not to let Rangers in.
Supporter power in action.
No reason why English fans can't behave likewise and force their clubs' owners to listen.
I imagine this is the kind of thing which could get supporters organised into affecting the game. Ie. organised walkouts 15 mins into matches, ticket boycotts, walls of silence in the stands.
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ticket boycotts, walls of silence in the stands.
So small heath fans have been protesting stuff for the last 139 years?
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ticket boycotts, walls of silence in the stands.
So small heath fans have been protesting stuff for the last 139 years?
The Neanderthal Great Unwashed are very good at not turning up to support their team.
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Opening 3 home games in Brisbane, Buenos Aires and Baku.
I don't think the people of Buenos Aires would give two shits about Premier League teams coming to play there.
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Depends what number plate they had on the team coach.
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If we play a game in Sydney, I know a good pub up in The Rocks that we could go to. I'm not sure if will be rammed full of Villa or not though.
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If Scudamore and his cronies get their way on this and it proves to be a financial success, which after all is the only way it will be measured. I'm convinced the PL could go the way of Formula One. Where Cities around the world will bid to host matches and whoever puts the most money forward gets the 'top' games and so on down the scale so that Hull v Stoke would probably be won by a village in Kazakhstan.
There could come a time where the majority of games are played abroad and we might get the crumbs, where a game just wouldn't be financially viable abroad , so we could end up with games at home against the likes of Stoke, Palace etc.
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Actually, I've been thinking for a while that F1 was the best analogy of what football has become.
Only the 2 or 3 teams with the best financing ever stand a chance of winning.
Once you're on the gravy train, only massive incompetence can get you kicked off.
Even if you get kicked off, everyone will still look at you as a top organisation (odd that both Liverpool and Ferrari are associated with red.)
Everyone else in the league are just there to fill spaces in the TV coverage, and essentially act as feeder teams when they either unearth a talent, or by taking the next big thing on loan.
Both sports have an odious little scrote that knows the price of everything and the value of nothing at the head of their organisations.
The overarching administration is rank with corruption, which remains the elephant in the room for everyone within spitting distance of the top.
I'm sure that there are several more you can add to the list.
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Call me a cynic, but fan protests about this bollocks will only strengthen Scudamore et al's views that the Premier League deserves a different/new/more appreciative audience.
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I'm not sure it will work anyway in terms of boosting support abroad.
Hold a game in Japan? Great, you've just pissed off your audience in South Korea. Host a match in the UAE? You've annoyed Qatar. And so on...
Just let Man U play all their home games abroad, nineteen games, nineteen different countries. They can keep League Cup games in Cornwall and FA Cup games in London to keep their traditional support happy.
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Because the whole point of professional sport is about how much money can be made, you can be absolutely sure that the Internationalisation of Club Football will continue.
It could be via a Super League and or playing games where there are consumers and money to be made.
Scudamore and his mates are more concerned that another league or sport will get ahead of them and in their words see the need to "expand the franchise"
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Meanwhile, the Germans look after their clubs, their home grown players and their fans, then clean up in European club and international football.
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I'm not sure it will work anyway in terms of boosting support abroad.
Hold a game in Japan? Great, you've just pissed off your audience in South Korea. Host a match in the UAE? You've annoyed Qatar. And so on...
Just let Man U play all their home games abroad, nineteen games, nineteen different countries. They can keep League Cup games in Cornwall and FA Cup games in London to keep their traditional support happy.
You forgot Small Heath.