The Premier League CANNOT be allowed to move games Stateside, it would kill the sport! | OneFootball

This week, Amos Murphy makes the argument against moving competitive Premier League matches to the USA.

Depending on who you ask, moving Premier League matches abroad is a concept older than Manchester City themselves. First mooted – at least officially – back in 2008, talk of a 39th game being added to the top-flight schedule has stuck around like a bad smell ever since.

But, amid football’s growing expansion in the United States, the proposal has once again reared its ugly head.

Reports emerged earlier this week that executives from American broadcaster NBC – the rights holders for Premier League matches in the US – have been in discussions about moving competitive matches Stateside.

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters issued a coy response when quizzed on the topic, insisting it isn’t currently in their plans, but did admit the door remains ‘ajar’. Understandably, the news has been greeted with a wide smile by some Premier League-loving Yanks.

The chance to see some of Europe’s best talents compete in a fixture that actually means something, as opposed to being wheeled out sporadically during a pre-season friendly, has whet the appetite for some.

However, not all Americans are on board with the idea… and rightly so.

For some, the beauty of the Premier League is what the TV cameras pick up. The players, the managers, the entertainment, the product. But, English football in its truest form is so much more than the 90 minutes of on-pitch action and studio coverage packaged together by broadcasters spending millions for the right to screen the matches.

It’s the pre-match pie. It’s the walk to the stadium. It’s the scarf seller outside the ground. It’s the gentle nod to the auld fella who’s been coming for years. It’s the crushing feeling after a disappointing defeat. And it’s the excitement to do it all again next week.

English football is about the community and taking it away from these shores – even if for just one game a season – sticks a dagger straight through the heart of a centuries-old institution. You can’t copy and paste that authenticity elsewhere.

The stadiums, the culture, the atmosphere – it’s all organic. That’s without mentioning the US already has its own thriving soccer scene waiting to burst into life. Ultimately, it’s a decision that will be made with the balance book in mind.

Why protect the heritage when you can sell out 100,000 capacity stadiums at $200 dollars – if not more – a pop each season? This isn’t to begrudge, belittle or undermine overseas supporters either.

From Vietnam to Vermont, Malaysia to Michigan and everywhere in between, the Premier League is richer for its foreign fans.  But how long before the novelty – and it will eventually – wears off?

The Premier League might be the shiny new toy right now, but there are only so many times people will fork out big-dollar fees for Fulham against Brentford. Or Everton vs Spurs. Wolves vs Chelsea. You get the point.