Scudamore explains fixture idea

Scudamore: Ready to take the Premier League global

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Premier League Chief Executive Richard Scudamore believes the idea of introducing a 39th fixture abroad is a step forward in promoting a league which has now become a worldwide 'phenomenon'.

Scudamore admits the plan is still being drawn up, and the details of the initiative are a long way from being finalised.

"In 2011- three years away we might play a 39th round, we currently play 38 matches home and away," he said.

"We might play a 39th round of ten games where all 20 Premier League teams go and play, but they play outside the UK.

"It's all to be decided. Clearly there are host cities that would like these games - we know that.

"We get approaches all the time. We get approaches to play a single game here and a single game there.

"We will look over these twelve months where those host cities might be. They will have to meet some strict criteria - obviously they will have to be able to cope with those matches.

Winter break?

Scudamore pinpointed January as the perfect time for these fixtures to be played - as the month avoids all club's being involved in European competitions.

"I think the ideal time to do it which can't be entirely boxed out is in January," he said.

"The reason for that is that there are only domestic matches taking place during that period.

"Clearly you can't do it when there is Champions League and there's Uefa Cup that kind of rules out big parts of the season.

"We would also like to do it as a winter break in some ways where you would get a better climate than the UK at that time, so January is looking like the most likely time."

The Premier League chief believes it is a case of now or never as the English league committee look to tighten their grip on what they believe has become the world's most popular domestic league.

"We have to do something to capture this phenomenon which is the Premier League - the globalisation of the Premier League," said Scudamore.

"It's partly by design, partly by accident. In some ways we have become the world's most popular football league.

Inspiration

"Clearly it has to be all thought through. We have to make sure fans who want to go, can go to make sure they can keep up there records of having been to all their club matches and make sure it all works."

Scudamore referred to recent steps taken by the NFL - with American football recently gracing Wembley, but claimed those steps were not the inspiration for the idea.

"It's been driven in a sense by the Premier League centrally but it has been shaped by ideas and proposals we keep getting in, and also by what other people are saying," he said.

"The NFL have come to London and are contracted to come to London for another three years.

"The NFL game wasn't the spur and wasn't the catalyst, it was in some way a point as to how we don't want to do it.

"They took a game away from the fans, we will add an extra fixture and bring it to fans."