The 39th Step?

[White Noise]

Allardyce: Take the 39th step


By SHAUN CUSTIS

Published: Today


Add a comment (23)


SAM ALLARDYCE wants the 39th game put back on the table so the Premier League remains the envy of the world.


The Blackburn boss has always been one of football's forward thinkers and believes it is vital that plans first mooted two years ago for clubs to play an extra fixture abroad become a reality.

For the first time in seven years there was no representative from England in the last four of the Champions League this season and there are fears the Premier League's star could be on the wane.

Allardyce feels it is time everyone woke up and realised the benefits of exporting our football overseas.

He said: "The 39th game is an absolute must. We have to make it work, get over the bureaucracy and look after our product.

"Every top country in Europe wants what we've got. Italy, Spain and Germany are jealous of us and the UEFA president Michel Platini cannot hide his jealousy.

"It's so important we stay ahead of everyone else and the 39th game will keep us there. Let's get it back on the agenda."

There was huge opposition to the original concept when it was first thrown into the ring by the League's chief executive Richard Scudamore.

The argument went that the extra match would unbalance the League because some teams would get a harder fixture than others. FIFA did not support the idea and nor did the vast majority of managers and fans.

Allardyce, however, has extensive knowledge of the worldwide view having worked as a TV pundit for the likes of ESPN, Al Jazeera, Sky, and Fox Sport.

For him, giving overseas spectators Premier League games for one week of the year would guarantee the future for years to come and mean that England could continue to attract the best players.

He said: "When I travel to the Far East, I'm staggered by the amount of people who stay up until three or four in the morning to watch the product live.


"They don't tape it, they just don't go to bed because they don't want to wake up the next day with someone telling them the result.

"There are more people in Asia watching in one weekend than the amount of English fans who watch in an entire season, something like 250million. That means 250m subscribers every weekend, and if we want to add to them, we have to go to them.

"Unlike cocooned people in this country, I realise that if you don't look after your product then when it's dead and buried and we say 'if only we'd done this' it's too late."

Allardyce is adamant that petty squabbles about who should play who have to be put to one side. He does not care if Blackburn end up playing Manchester United in Hong Kong and losing.

He said: "Seed it, have a draw or whatever, I'm not bothered. Forget about the points and who you have to play, it's one game out of 39.

"Why do the American NFL come to Wembley? Because they are making loads of money out of it.
   
"We should all ask ourselves a few questions about what's important. Do we like working in the Premier League? The answer is yes. It's the top league in the world with the best entertainment.

"Would we like to keep the product safe? Yes. Do we like the money it brings in? Yes. Would we like to protect that? Yes.

"Well if we take it to the people across the world they are going to want more of it and instead of subscriptions declining they are going to increase.

"There's a massive increase in overseas TV rights. Doesn't that tell everyone we need to get on with this 39th game, now?

"The way we play our game makes it the most attractive in the world. It's high tempo, and delivers a much more exciting game than the Spanish, Italian or German leagues.

"It is very important to keep the best footballers coming into our country to maintain that level of entertainment.

"The 39th game might be difficult to organise and fitting it in might be difficult but, if we want to be the top, we can't just sit back and think we are going to be there forever. We have to make sure of it."


Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/2951670/Allardyce-Take-the-39th-step.html#ixzz0mUfXaCGJ

[The Doctor]

Cobblers to your marketing-speak Allardyce, its totally against the principles of sporting competition.

And how the hell would you fit it into what many complain is an already congested fixture calendar?

Sounds to me like the suits have got to Fat Sam.  If the 39th game is tabled again, I'll stand against it just like I did last time.  Fecking stupid idea

[finnster01]

He makes sense in everything he says for once (very surprised) except for the fact a 39th game is going to impact the integrity of the tournament.

How is that ever going to be fair?

[Lighthouse]

Yes lets make more money and ...no that's it. There is no other reason for this at all. Still Big Sam likes the old money for doing nothing principle, so other than harming our game and over selling it and screwing the home supporter, let's go for it.

[LBNo11]

...Allardyce is probably in the pocket of some lobbyist to come out with this statement.

39 steps - the mans a Donat...

[White Noise]

Yes lets make more money and ...no that's it. There is no other reason for this at all. Still Big Sam likes the old money for doing nothing principle, so other than harming our game and over selling it and screwing the home supporter, let's go for it.

Totally agree. I have been a huge fan of cricket since I was a lad but what has happened in the game in the last 5 years has put me right off it. I no longer go, watch on the telly or even read about it the newspapers - it is a totally different game since the advent of 20/20 and the money hungry attitude that ushered in. I quite like 20/20 as a spectacle but it has had the effect of turning the game on its head and the soul is being sold to the highest bidder. Also, with money has come mediocrity on all sides. Great shame.

[Logicalman]

What a load of old pony. The suits are in it for the money - nothing less.

Just because he cannot seem to get a team to play overseas except for friendlies as much as he wants, he feels the need to hijack the Prem to do it for him. What would really be the difference between this and a friendly? Who overseas really gives a monkeys about the extra 1 or 3 points a team might earn?

When he banters about the 250 million extra subscribers, then that is exactly what they are, subscribers. If the Prem teams went overseas to play any matches who do you think would fill the stadium - definitely not the local kids who are those new subscribers - it'll be all corporate suits and friends. How many people does he think will actually get to see the games in any case?

Sorry Sam, I respect you mate and what you have to say - most of the time, but on this point, you're just a front man for the PL and FA suits that will actually make the money for themselves, whilst leaving the players and coaches absolutely exhausted for no good reason.

..

[ron]

39th, then a 40th and so on. In the end it becomes as competitive as the Harlem Globetrotters or the wrestling that used to be on Saturdays. Agree totally with the comments about cricket having the soul torn out of it with Twenty20  (featuring the vacuous singing of "Another one bites the dust" at the fall of a wicket...and the fact you can't take your own beer in any more - but buy and drink enough of theirs at £4 a pint to turn you into the Incredible Hulk).

It would do the game of football the world of good to be suddenly hard-hit by the recession if only to confirm to the money men where their bread is really buttered......

.......but loyalty being what it is, money gets chucked at the game so they are on safe ground.

[michaelread]

the way to do it is to have a pre season cup that is a knockout fixture, and hold the games all over the world with the final being held somewhere that they will get a capacity crowd/money.

Do it over the space of three to four weeks, no replays, everything goes straight to penalties so the players dont burn out.

Unlimited subs etc etc

Honestly, scrap the charity cup or whatever it is and give it to the winner of the pre season cup.

Get a middle eastern company to throw a few mil at it to have the final in their home stadium in Qatar or something, split up the prize pool amongst the clubs, tell them to take their merch, give them a cut of the gates

a much better preseason than the clubs currently have and a chance for managers to give their sides a run against quality opponents with something to play for, albeit in a low risk and low key environment.


Gee they should hire me for the FA, I'll pretend I am english.