Singapore is a country that is only half the size of Greater London. But every Singaporean understands that in a globalised world, national success is nothing if it cannot be translated to an international success.

Which is the reason why many Sinagporeans don’t understand the issues surrounding the protectionist attitude of those condemning the globalisation of the English Premier League. When a Manchester United or a Liverpool visit this part of the world, almost every sporting activity stops to pay homage to Wayne Rooney or Steven Gerrard.

I remember once when Arsenal came to town and trained in the sports complex located in the middle of the business district here, a bunch of us took leave just to try to catch a glimpse of our heroes. And the venue where Liverpool were training was over-run by fans despite it being several kilometres away from the main thoroughfare.

'The bottom line is that English football clubs have outgrown their role as local community centres that form part of the local and civic pride'


The influence of the Premier League is so vast that their proposed tour to South East Asia was cancelled because of the fear that it would disrupt the Asian Cup Finals held last year.

There is absolutely no doubt that the English game has already gone global. There are shops in Singapore that survive and profit out of nothing but selling English league clubs' memorabilia. Manchester United shirts and merchandise can be found in every country I have visited, even in some of the remotest parts of the world. Premier League players, be they English or foreign, are worshipped, sometimes more than any deity. Their allure is attracting the attention of millionaires and billionaires from America to Russia and Asia.

And with this globalisation comes financial success that has transformed the Premier League into probably the richest in the world and created countless jobs both directly in football and indirectly in ancillaries, like the publicity machines and magazines.

English club sides are effectively rock stars. They are no longer sporting enterprises but form part of the pop culture. No-one cares much about the nationality of their favourite pop band. All that matters is that they keep churning out hit after hit. It's like the American Grammy awards are now dominated by British winners. Simon Cowell is the de facto star of a show that’s entitled American Idol. And this year's movie awards are tipped to be swept by the British film Atonement.

The bottom line is that English football clubs have outgrown their role as local community centres that form part of the local and civic pride. English football clubs have outgrown their role as places for hope and ambition, places to dream, places to promote community bonding, places for the working class to let off steam every week, to release the stresses and tensions built up working hard for little money. English football clubs have outgrown their role as a place where the common people come together. In short, English football clubs have outgrown their role as part of the art and culture of the English landscape.

Arsene Wenger mentioned that only 10% of Arsenal's fans are from the locale around the Emirates. With a figure like that, isn’t it incumbent on the Arsenal football team to travel out and meet their fans rather than force their fans to a pilgrimage to the Emirates?

Whether or not the plan to play a “39th game” will effectively cater to a global audience is beside the point. It could well be the starting place for 10 or 15 or even half of all regular-season games to be played overseas in a structure that resembles the Champions League. There is a precedent if ever there needed one of how commercial considerations can drive the future of the game.

For over 10 years we have accepted the Champions League and the UEFA Cups as valid formats. For so much of that time, the Champions League winners are not even the winners of their respective leagues. Yet the likes of Liverpool feel no shame in parading their triumphs in Europe despite the fact they are barren in the domestic league for coming on 20 years.

For more than five years, there has been talk of a breakaway European Super League. The Intercontinental Cup, an unofficial trophy given once upon a time to the winners of the a game staged in Japan between the European Cup winners and the South American Cup winners, is now officially endorsed as the FIFA World Club Cup and staged between the winners of the various continents' cup winners.

No matter how you choose look at it, a format will be developed to bring the game close to a global audience. And a way will be devised by the Premier League to bring their cash cow closer to their wider global fan base. Be it starting with a “39th game” to playing the entire FA Cup or Carling Cup or whatever fixture overseas, the winds of change are blowing, and it is ludicrous to impose any sentimental restrictions on clubs that have outgrown their national boundaries.

Here in Singapore, every organisation, be it a business enterprise or even a non-profit organisation, always harbours ambitions to grow out of its locality to become globally recognised. Singaporeans have long understood that the only way to survive is not only to establish yourself onshore, but also to succeed offshore. So it comes as a surprise to many that a country that once boasted the greatest sailing fleet on Earth, and that once held colonies in every corner of the world, is so reluctant to allow its clubs to venture out and follow their Victorian predecessors in a conquest of the world.

Whether the locals like it or not, the British clubs are coming! This time, they won’t be men in red uniforms on ships using matchlock guns; they’ll be Red Devils coming out of Liverpool with an entire Arsenal.

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