HARRY REDKNAPP has thrown his backing behind Premier League games being played abroad as he said the idea has “got to happen”.
Speculation about English top flight matches being staged in other countries has been rife for almost two decades.
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But the move has never become a reality after criticism from fans and media towards the idea, which became known as ‘Game 39’.
La Liga are set to host their first match in Miami between Barcelona and Villarreal in December after fighting off opposition from Spanish authorities and Fifa.
The historic match has now been approved by Uefa – who have also rubber-stamped a Serie A match between AC Milan and Como taking place in Australia in February.
Now ex-Tottenham boss Redknapp believes the Prem should now follow suit.
Redknapp, speaking on The Managers podcast, powered by Boyle Sports, said: “It’s only a matter of time before games are played abroad. It’s got to happen.
“You’ve got all foreign owners now – they’ll be taking games there. I saw the American football is at Tottenham. It’s going to happen.
“They’ll all want to take their teams over there. They have the big say in what happens in the Premier League – all the foreign owners. There won’t be an English owner or British owner in a few years.”
Despite La Liga and Serie A matches getting the go-ahead to move abroad, Uefa chiefs remain firmly against the idea.
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Uefa said its ruling executive committee had “reluctantly taken the decision to approve, on an exceptional basis” the requests from Spain and Italy, due to a lack of rules to prevent the games being switched.
But it reaffirmed its pledge to work with Fifa to “uphold the integrity of domestic competitions and the close bond between clubs, their supporters and local communities”.
Uefa boss Aleksandr Ceferin recently said: “League matches should be played on home soil.
“While it is regrettable to have to let these two games go ahead, this decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent.
“Our commitment is clear – to protect the integrity of national leagues and ensure that football remains anchored in its home environment.”
And Prem chief Richard Masters said there wasn’t an appetite to stage overseas games anyway.
He said this summer: “We had a look at that back in 2008. It was very controversial in the UK.
“The idea behind playing matches abroad is to grow the sport, to grow your league.
“But we’ve managed to do that in the intervening period, by different methods, broadcasting partnerships, digital technology, events like our Summer Series, making the Premier League truly global.
“So there’s a whole bunch of reasons not to do it, but mainly because we’re happy with what we have in the UK and we’re not changing that.
“We have clubs that have hosted NFL games and an interesting relationship with the NFL but on this particular topic we’re very different. We’ve got no plans to take matches abroad – there would be significant pushback.”
Harry Redknapp was speaking on The Managers podcast, powered by Boyle Sports. Listen via Spotify and Apple Music now.
