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The Premiership's scheme to play additional matches outside the UK has caused considerable controversy. Ten extra games would be played at five different venues, with cities bidding for the right to stage them. The additional fixtures would be determined by a draw but the top five teams could be seeded to avoid playing each other. Should the scheme go ahead, the new round of games would take place in January 2011 (which would make it difficult for some North American venues). Fan seems to be overwhelmingly against the idea, but they tend to be very conservative. One argument is that the move is driven by 'greed'. However, in a market economy, it is rational for a business to profit maximise - and football is a business. The English Premier League's income from the sale of overseas TV rights has already increased from £178m in 2001 to £625m for the current deal that runs until 2010. Broadcaster NowTV paid around £100m for the rights to Hong Kong alone. An estimated 1bn people worldwide watched the Premier League game between Arsenal and Manchester United in November 2007.
There are more practical objections to the scheme. It could increase player burnout. Supposing that Manchester United was drawn against the team 20th in the table, but Arsenal had to play Spurs. Manchester United win in Los Angeles, but Arsenal and Spurs draw in Dubai and the two point gap makes the difference in deciding who wins the Premiership. Arsenal would not be very happy. It is also questionable whether one would get very strong bids for, say, Wigan versus Middlesbrough, although presumably the idea of limiting it to five cities is that each city would get one top five team. Whether this scheme goes ahead or not will be a good test of whether globalisation has really arrived in football: certainly it is part of the argument used by Premiership chief executive Richard Scudamore. It will be interesting to see what the reaction of Fifa and Uefa is. It may be that the scheme will be seen as a step too far.
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