No place for English in Australia

FRank Lowy and Ben Buckley have clearly stated the English will not be coming to play a Premier League game in Australia.

Well, I'm delighted. Derby v Sunderland didn't work for me anyway.

Full statement below.

NO GROUNDS FOR EPL IN AUSTRALIA

FFA SAYS NO

Football Federation Australia (FFA) today said that it did not support a move by the English Premier League (EPL) to play a round in Australia.

“We said when this issue first arose last week that FFA’s overwhelming priority is to promote the Hyundai A-League and to continue to invest in, and grow, the game in Australia,” FFA Chairman, Frank Lowy, said.

“That remains our view.”

The EPL announced on Thursday that it was developing a proposal to play one round of their competition in cities around the world, with Melbourne and Sydney mooted as possible contenders.

“The bottom line is, FFA rejects the notion of another country playing a round of their domestic competition in Australia and intruding on the development of the Hyundai A-League and the game in Australia,” Mr Lowy said.

FFA CEO, Ben Buckley, added that this does not rule out exhibition games involving a Hyundai A-League club with international club sides in the future.

“However, our overriding objective is to build equity in the Hyundai A-League and everything we do is assessed against that objective,” Mr Buckley said.

The EPL would require the agreement of FIFA, the Asian Football Confederation and FFA to stage a match in Australia.