
Despite boasting a joint-best document of three gold medals to name, football at the Olympic Games has long been a foreign concept to us Britons. Following the Soccer Association’s decision to eradicate the definition between ‘amateur’ and ‘professional’ football, Group GB have not since moved into a football team into the qualifying competitions for the Olympics. However, despite having not competed since the 1968 Games in Ancient rome (or more accurately – as far as soccer is concerned – throughout Italy), the return of our national sport to the Olympic arena could reignite the possibility of sending English soccer beyond our coastlines and over and above to foreign shores.
Using the recent publication of the Greater london 2012 Olympic Games schedule, it absolutely was confirmed that Wembley stadium, in addition to Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, would not be open to host the FA Community Safeguard game on August Twelve. The traditional curtain-raiser to the new season was pencilled in to delay the beginning of the Premier League as to not clash with the conclusion of the Olympic games. However with the Millennium Ground hosting the men’s bronze medal match on August 12, Wembley hosting the gold honor match on August 12 and the proceeding Closing Ceremony on August 12, the introductory contest between the Premier League champions and the FA Pot winners will have to be accommodated in other places.
Speculation that this could lead way for an overseas game continues to be dismissed hastily by the FA, using a spokesman confirming that ‘the Community Shield will take place at the traditional time at a esteemed stadium in England.’ For that reason, the obvious venue which would collect maximum ticket receipts for the benefiting communities would be Aged Trafford (which will host its final Olympic game on August Seven). Yet this latest statement seems to make a mockery out of driving both Manchester City and United, Stoke City and Bolton Wanderers followers to travel down south in order to compete in this year’s FA Cup semi-finals. Specially when St James’ Park, Anfield or Rental property Park (to name a few) seem to present much more viable alternatives. For you to relocate internally when there is zero financial benefit is an unappealing option to the money-men at FA HQ. But to do so internationally any time Wembley is unavailable and entrance receipts go elsewhere, might be met with a less off traffic silence.
Despite so far snubbing such idea of playing a ‘39th game’ in foreign countries, originally proposed by Most recognized League Chief Executive Richard Scudamore in early 2008, it seems that the notion remains in rearing its ugly head. As recently as The fall of last year, Liverpool co-owner Tom Werner indicated his interest in introducing a competitive game abroad into the period, citing the global strength of the Premier League as its main attraction. Scudamore himself has relatively come to accept that his initial proposition will never come to fruition, yet appeared convinced that the thought would eventually return in another guise, believing that the idea was still a viable concept. ‘Will it come back in the initial form? Probably not…’ he said inside October 2008. ‘Will it keep coming back in another form? Almost certainly.’ He added, ‘You can’t patronise the particular fans by playing useless matches… The audience abroad is not absurd. They are sophisticated and they desire really meaningful matches.’ Clearly his approach will have to be refined to avoid another head-on collision with powerful individuals within the sport.
Previously UEFA President Michel Platini poured disapproval on such plans, labelling it a ‘nonsense idea’ and a ‘joke’, whilst FIFA President Sepp Blatter suggested that it would ‘not work’ due to the time difference within screening the games around the world. The exuberant FIFA President, who himself has portrayed the odd contentious and controversial view in the past, offers since mellowed to the idea, unveiling that discussions had been kept during the Beijing Olympics over the potential for playing Carling Cup matches within Asia. Such talks had taken place with the Asian Football Confederation President (and newly declared candidate to succeed Sepp Blatter as Fifa world cup President) Mohammad bin Hammam, who acquired also himself been highly opposed to bringing the Top League into his region. Well aware of its worldwide charm as well as the enormous popularity of particular English clubs around Japan, bin Hammam had been wary of the potentially disastrous effect it could have on the attendances at game titles around the continent. In recent years even so the growth in attendance figures in the J-League in Japan has decreased concerns that the screening of English games would dissuade people from going to assist their local team. Nonetheless, the AFC may consider adopting a UEFA-style regulation which will allow it to dictate when a real game would be broadcast for it to avoid clashing with community games.
Various Middle Eastern side federations had also since indicated their interest, notably Essa Saleh, Managing Director of the United Arabic Emirates Football Association. ‘We have more when compared with 100 nationalities living in Dubai, the majority of sports fans around the world recognize all the players, and the Dubai Sports Town stadium will be the best in the center East,’ he said in an meeting given to the BBC. Qatar meanwhile have also affirmed their interest, with their ability to host one-off showpiece matches previously being heightened by hosting intercontinental friendlies between England and Brazilian and Brazil and Argentina inside Doha, itself a future World Pot stadium. Such glamorous spots would seem appealing to the top night clubs in English football, the notion accentuated by the Saudi Arabian FA who’ve declared their interest yet only if the teams concerned big teams such as Man utd, Liverpool or Chelsea. This would seem to tie in conveniently together with staging the Community Shield since since 1998, only Portsmouth (throughout 2008) have permeated your dominance of the ‘Big Four’ within the twelve-monthly fixture as winners with the FA Cup (in the past decade, golf equipment such as Everton, Cardiff, West Ham United, Millwall and have all managed to attain the Cup Final, albeit in the end with no success and subsequent failure to qualify for the Community Protect).
Original concerns that the ‘39th game’ would further distort the competition as well as widen the gap between the more potent and poorer clubs within the division would inevitably resurface, specially as only league champs and cup winners might enjoy the benefits of such a game. But is this not happening regardless? Whilst Game Thirty-nine always had the intention of distributing its revenue amongst all 20 clubs, there might potentially be questions above where the revenue generated with the Community Shield would be allotted should the game go worldwide, and how to exercise the syndication without discarding any of the game’s long standing tradition. Whilst many authorities will consider any such competitive game abroad as a unfaithfulness of all such traditions, such a move would only echo moves in other athletics, notably American Football that now stages an annual Football game at Wembley Stadium.
Considered one of Scudamore’s leading arguments was his concern that another sport, or even another league, would likely seize upon such an chance. And indeed a similar precedent has been established on mainland Europe, using the Italian Super Cup getting now been contested upon foreign soil four times since 1993. Usually the home of the Serie A champions would enjoy host the winners in the Coppa Italia, but cities in the USA (twice), Libya and China have got since hosted the permanent fixture, in a bid the increase global interest in the Italian game getting fallen behind the Uk and Spanish competition in recent years. The success of taking the Italian Super Cup abroad (the 2009 tie up at Beijing’s Olympic Stadium attracted above 65,000) has in place paved the way for other leagues to follow suit, yet in spite of playing two ties in the United States, US Soccer chief Sunli Gulati expressed his reluctance to entertain standard games in his home country once the idea of the ‘39th game’ has been suggested. It could be argued that despite sharing concerns much like those of Asia, the growth of the American game could possibly be helped by staging such an event. Many of Europe’s elite clubs often travel east for pre-season trips and it does seem that this rise in interest is certainly obvious; an estimated 19.4m viewers updated in to the US-Ghana World Cup complement, making it the most watched ‘soccer’ sport in American history.
Therefore whilst traditionalists will strongly disagree, and in spite of the silly nature of Scudamore’s blueprints, there isn’t any denying that his perspective maintains it’s potential. The developing integration of the footballing world, whether it is by trade or investment is mirrored by the worldwide and global culture of football. The implications suggest that this globalisation of the sport needs some form of global regulation; only time will tell whether a very old British tradition is destined to be swallowed by this globalising phenomenon. If it is, this indicates August 12 2012 could offer the platform for this kind of occasion.