NO TO TO GAM£ 39

[Dirk Gently]

I've still only had 2 replies to the email that was sent on my behalf after signing the petition. How rude of these clubs not to acknowledge receipt of it.

Premier League Football clubs in treating supporters like sh*t shocker!

[Ian Royal]

Ha, I sent letters to the club, FA and PL and I've not so much as had an acknowledgment yet.

I got 4 email replies to the petition though.

[Pat Butchers Ring]

If they can sort out the issue of who plays who then i am all for it. More money into the english game cements the premier league as the best league in the world and conveniently for me, my local team plays in this league. Also money is slowly dripping down the league pyramid (not enough but thats another arguement) that will provide better facilities for our youngsters. I would also fancy a weekend watching my team in a major city that i will otherwise not (probabaly) happen!

[STAR Voice]

If they can sort out the issue of who plays who then i am all for it. More money into the english game cements the premier league as the best league in the world and conveniently for me, my local team plays in this league. Also money is slowly dripping down the league pyramid (not enough but thats another arguement) that will provide better facilities for our youngsters. I would also fancy a weekend watching my team in a major city that i will otherwise not (probabaly) happen!

I won't go into detail on the utter naivety of this post, except to pick up on the last point. With the millions of pounds that host cities will have to spend to host a match, just how much do you think tickets for these games will be? They'll only be for the super-rich, not for the likes of you or I.

It's clear that although the immediate threat of an extra games seems to have receded, and supporters are 1-0 up after ten minutes, there's still a long way to go. It's clear that The Premier League want to play matches overseas, and that they're still definitely working on ways to make this happen.

Sepp Blatter may have initially opposed this, but just how much do you trust his integrity not to be "persuaded" once the sums of money involved come near, and the FA (who should act as the "Guardians of the National Game") have yet to condemn this - all of the statement made after the FA Board meeting yesterday was inviting the PL to come back with proposals which would make this work, rather than outlawing it.

The biggest danger for supporters is complacency - assuming that because "GAM£ 39" looks a dead duck then the whole proposal about overseas matches is dead too. The real situation is anything but this - never under-estimate the resources, the guile and the greed of those behind the Premier League. Many are speculating that by deliberately leaking news of something so unworkable that they are positioning themselves to look the good guys when they reveal what they really want!

Over the next few weeks, supporters of every Premier League club will be making a protest against the idea of playing overseas, competitive, matches in English competitions. STAR and the FSF will be launching these on Sunday, so please join in to show our opposition to overseas matches.

PM me or e-mail me on STAR.Campaigns@btinternet.com if you'd like to show your support to the campaign by helping for about 30 minutes before Sunday's match.

[Royal Lady]

I'm still waiting to hear my orders Star Campaigns.

Oh and I got a reply from NUFC today. So that's 3 replies from 20 league clubs plus the FA, plus the PL.

[STAR Voice]

I'm still waiting to hear my orders Star Campaigns.

Oh and I got a reply from NUFC today. So that's 3 replies from 20 league clubs plus the FA, plus the PL.

Yes, it looks like everyone who signed has got a response today from Newcastle - one which includes the phrase "However, this is a very interesting and exciting idea which if structured correctly will have great benefits for football and its communities." Yes, and I'm the Queen of Sheba!

RL - I'll let you know what you need to do later, when I know how many people we've got in all.

[Royal Lady]

ok, but I'm not streaking.

[T.R.O.L.I.]

ok, but I'm not streaking.

Thank God for that

[Pat Butchers Ring]

Please do share the reasons for the naivety of my post. As i said apart from the way they choose which games are played, i dont see a lot wrong with the proposal. Its an additional game so the likes of you and I arent losing out, its a chance to gain additional revenue for the club and raise our profile ans more importantly it will give us more money to ensure we can continue to play in the premier league.

STAR provide a platform for peolple that dont agree with the proposal to get their voice heard but remember that their isnt a platform for people that aren't actually bothered either way. I think a lot of people just jump on the anti FA bandwagon cos they are proposing change, and people dont like change.

[STAR Voice]

Please do share the reasons for the naivety of my post. As i said apart from the way they choose which games are played, i dont see a lot wrong with the proposal. Its an additional game so the likes of you and I arent losing out, its a chance to gain additional revenue for the club and raise our profile ans more importantly it will give us more money to ensure we can continue to play in the premier league.

Certainly. The biggest naivety is, as I suggested in my post, the assumption that any overseas matches would be priced in a way that anyone other than the super-rich would be able to attend them. I'd also suggest that you're being naive in saying that "it will give us more money to ensure we can continue to play in the premier league." It will also give the other 19 Premier League teams the same money so it won't make the Premier League any more competitive or make it any easier for us to play in - in fact, probably the opposite as the bigger the club the more "pulling power" they'd get and so, as always, this proposal would result in greater revenue for the bigger clubs and less for the smaller clubs like Reading.

STAR provide a platform for peolple that dont agree with the proposal to get their voice heard but remember that their isnt a platform for people that aren't actually bothered either way. I think a lot of people just jump on the anti FA bandwagon cos they are proposing change, and people dont like change.

Not really, no. STAR exists to represent the views of our members - and everything we've heard from them about says that they are overwhelmingly against the proposal - as, it seems, are the vast majority of football supporters. As a STAR Board Member I wouldn't be doing things properly if I didn't react to what members were saying and campaign accordingly - that is what they elected me to do.

I must also say that this is the first time I've heard complaints of "people who aren't actually bothered" not having their voices heard. How would that work in practice?

Also, to correct the final sentence, these proposals are nothing to do with the FA. They came from the Premier League, which is a completely separate body, so I don't see how this can be down to "an anti-FA bandwagon". Indeed, the FA is seen as a possible saviour to get the plans for overseas matches scrapped - apart from the FA Board meeting yesterday (where 4 of the 8 voting members represent the PL), there is an FA Council meeting in mid-March where the mix of vote-holders gives a much better hope of the FA growing some balls and standing up to the PL.

[Thaumagurist*]

.

[Pat Butchers Ring]

The biggest naivety is, as I suggested in my post, the assumption that any overseas matches would be priced in a way that anyone other than the super-rich would be able to attend them.

Couple of points:

1) If you think that the price of the tickets for the proposed games are the issue people have with this proposal then i dont think you understand the people you claim to be representing.

2)Please can you tell me where I assumed anything on ticket pricing

I'd also suggest that you're being naive in saying that "it will give us more money to ensure we can continue to play in the premier league." It will also give the other 19 Premier League teams the same money so it won't make the Premier League any more competitive or make it any easier for us to play in - in fact, probably the opposite as the bigger the club the more "pulling power" they'd get and so, as always, this proposal would result in greater revenue for the bigger clubs and less for the smaller clubs like Reading.

Thats not being naive, please re-read what i wrote. Reading having more money will ensure that we will compete better with other championship clubs to ensure we can continue to play in the premier league

As a STAR Board Member I wouldn't be doing things properly if I didn't react to what members were saying and campaign accordingly - that is what they elected me to do.

Star...Board Member..... Dont make me laugh

[STAR Liaison]

i dont see a lot wrong with the proposal. Its an additional game so the likes of you and I arent losing out, its a chance to gain additional revenue for the club and raise our profile ans more importantly it will give us more money to ensure we can continue to play in the premier league.

Tell me how you would feel in a few years when the then Chairmen decide that there is a higher capacity stadium abroad that they would like to play all their home games at as they would then get much more gate money? Not likely, maybe not but then a few decades ago we would have said that no football club could move location but ask Wimbledon fans if that is true. Do not rely on promises now of only one game as in the years to come the argument that there is little difference between one game and ten as the principle has been establised that it is OK to play a league game abroad.

Can you explain how the extra money will help us ensure we can continue to play in the premier league as all the other clubs in the premier league have more money - surely all that will happen is that the transfer fees and wages for players will ramp up again but what if the seeded clubs negotiate more than one twentieth of the money, as they are the draw for the bidding, then we (and the other 15 clubs) would be disadvantaged after the handout not better off. It may just mean that we would be more likely to bounce between premier league and championship but that seems a little selfish to me or maybe you would like to pull up the ladder and stop all relegation now that we have made the top flight. I would prefer to see that football become more competitive not less.

If you think that STAR is not representing your opinion then please feel free to communicate with us, we are democratic and open to suggestions from our members and every year we ask for people to stand as Board members to represent our members so you could try to fulfill the role yourself.

[TheMaraudingDog]

I quite like the sound of watching the Royals abroad.
East stand sing "we're all going on a European tour" and when the opportunity arises they're against the idea!

Imagine a trip to Dubai, New York or even Down Under. What a trip that would be!

[STAR Voice]

I quite like the sound of watching the Royals abroad.
East stand sing "we're all going on a European tour" and when the opportunity arises they're against the idea!

Imagine a trip to Dubai, New York or even Down Under. What a trip that would be!

This proposal isn't about Reading playing a home game overseas - it's about a third-party city/stadium/company/staging a match at which Reading and another team will be playing. What on earth makes you think tickets will be available to the likes of us?

And even if they were, the prices that host cities would have to pay to host a match would mean that the tickets prices for these matches would be astronomical - for the super-rich only. So even if they were available for the people who go to the MadStad week-in, week-out, they'd be out of reach financially of the vast majority of us.

[TheMaraudingDog]

super rich only?

I doubt that, many normal fans will be able to afford the trip. Look at the World Cup in Korea, it wasn't full of super rich types, plenty of working class people that had saved and that were having a great time.

Besides, what a load on nonsence anyway. I'd love a £2m mansion house. I can't afford it. End of. No need to moan like a baby about that.

Football is more than just a results driven game, it's about the fans having a good time. And where better to have a good time than on a fanatastic trip like this.

[STAR Voice]

Who's talking about affording the trip - it's the match tickets that will be the big issue. If you want to travel to a foreign city and not see a match there then that's fine.

But I'm not going to take any more bait than that on this one

[Pat Butchers Ring]

LOL people disagreeing with your opinion is not necessarily 'bait'. Sort out the arrangement of the fixtures then lets all have a weekend away in Bangkok watching RFC VS Pompey. I might even be tempted to travel on STAR organised travel!

[Royal Lady]

Booo to Arsenal....

Dear Supporter

I would like to thank you for your email regarding the recent Premier League announcement on exploring the feasibility of expanding an overseas element for the competition from season 2010/11.

Arsenal is a club that embraces progress and our initial assessment is that the proposal is innovative and would showcase the Premier League worldwide.

We have approximately 2 million supporters of Arsenal FC who reside in the UK and well in excess of 30 million fans on a worldwide basis.

This proposal will allow a number of our overseas fans to watch their team play, whilst at the same time taking nothing away from our domestic fans, many of whom wish to watch all 38 Premier League matches.

This plan is very much at the developmental stage and clearly requires much further study into very many detailed aspects.

In closing, I would like to thank you for your continued support.

Yours faithfully

Keith Edelman
MANAGING DIRECTOR

[Dirk Gently]

And doesn't this line say it all :

We have approximately 2 million supporters of Arsenal FC who reside in the UK and well in excess of 30 million fans on a worldwide basis.