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Keith Wyness Interview


Louis

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BBC today interviewed Keith Wyness with regards to the Premier League plans to play one game abroad every season as of 2010.

 

To help understand the interview, this is what the one-time Everton bashing Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: “I think the fans have got to come first, you've got audiences around the world if that is money that is going back into football and if that is helping keeping the price of tickets down in England that will be something that people will want to take into account but it really is, let's hear what the fans say on this, there's no doubt about the world wide interest in the premier league and there's no doubt that it's good for football because it gets more money into the game in England.

 

The English Premier League has taken over the Spanish and the Italian as being probably the one that people want to watch the most and therefore you've got to get the best players into the league but let's see what the fans say about this, it’s important to recognise that all the money should go back into the game.”

 

The interview went like so:

 

BBC: You’ve got FIFA saying you’ve got to get it past us –they’re not convinced, Michel Platini saying it’s a joke, Sir Alex Ferguson’s not amused that he wasn’t consulted, Gordon Brown says if you do this you’ve got to use the money to subsidise the next generation in terms of season tickets. Do you accept you’ve got a PR battle on your hands at the moment?

 

Keith Wyness: No. I can think I can accept the fact that I’m surprised people are taking such hardened positions already because all we’ve done is put forward a concept and idea, we’ll discuss it over the next few months. There’s a lot of detail to come out yet and I think it’s hard for people to take such hardened positions so soon.

 

BBC: This issue of the 39th game also vexes a lot of people and there are suggestions that it completely skews the element of the competition if you’re going to do this keep it as 38 games they’re saying, maybe even if this season – if I am a season ticket holder here at Everton I have one fewer game the season after I wouldn’t. Do you accept that is really concerning people? The 39th game might just dislocate the competition.

 

Keith Wyness: My sense of the arguments at the moment are every except the global appeal of the premiership, there is a massive interest overseas, there are many fans overseas we have to serve as well

 

BBC: Sorry, why do you have to serve them?

 

Keith Wyness: Well I think there is such a keen interest in the premier league, I think it’s important we try and help them get more involved in the premier league. It is a position that the premiership is the top league in the world. We have to carry on consolidating that position.

 

BBC: People at home would just think this is about money? You want to consolidate that position to make more money. You want to take games abroad to make more money. Is that all it’s about?

 

Keith Wyness: As I said, if you’d let me finish. Apart from commercial consideration there is also the footballing consideration obviously and that is still a debate that is being had. There is a lot of detail still come out. I am confident the premier league has thought this through. They will. I’m sure in due course unveil the details. Now my reading of it is FIFA have not said they are going to impose, they said they are going to examine it, it’s a different thing. I think Gordon Brown also, although I’m surprised a Raith Rovers fan is getting involved in English football has said we should be listening to the fans and we will do of course. There are a lot of things to be said here but the debate has only just started.

 

BBC: David Gold at Birmingham City said to us that the money as far as he is concerned is going towards subsidising season tickets because at the moment the average age of a season ticket is frighteningly high, I believe it is 39 – the highest of any major European league. Would you go along with that here at Everton, would you use some of that money to subsidise season tickets so you get the next generation in.

 

Keith Wyness: There are many things to look at, obviously numerous sources would give us a lot of opportunities to look at things like that; initiatives – given that we only got this thrown at us at half past ten last Thursday morning and as I say there is a long time yet to have this debate. Those are very interesting lines of approach and I think it will benefit the whole game in general

 

BBC: What part will the fans play in all this, in other words if they are as hostile as they have been so far, to what extent will you take their views into account?

 

Keith Wyness: Obviously we have to listen to that debate and we have initial gut reactions in the media right now, Gordon Brown used the word consultation and that’s a very, very broad word. Richard Scudamore said if we listened to fans on all issues we would be kicking off every Saturday afternoon at 3pm, the Premier League may not be in existence, many things wouldn’t have moved forward. I think it’s right that the premiership shows leadership and takes things forward having consulted properly in the appropriate ways, what those appropriate ways are – we don’t know yet and what those bodies are is difficult to see. I’m quite sad that some of the fan groups have taken such strong positions when we haven’t the details so far, that’s an important thing. We have to take a deep breath and look at this for a little while longer.

 

BBC: An Evertonian season ticket said if this happens and Everton play in Bangkok, the previous home game at Goodison Park will be his last. If he or she was here what would you say to them?

 

Keith Wyness: I’d say “Hey, let’s work this through”. I’d say that that is a gut reaction for something that has happened in the last 48 hours, I think a reasoned response is what is needed right now. I think it’s a very exciting opportunity, I think it’s the way forward for the league, I really do.

 

BBC: Is this only the start then, amongst that meeting are you saying “well. Let’s start with one game, who knows it might go to more than one game.

 

Keith Wyness: No, that is one thing that was discussed and I think we are very clear that it will be one game that is what we are talking about; one weekend in the Premiership and not starting to creep into a bigger number of games. It’s all part of the detail that will come forward and I am confident that Richard [scudamore] will come forward and provide that,

 

BBC: Are you surprised by the reaction thus far?

 

Keith Wyness: Not really, in a sense I’m pleased it’s so important to so many people; it shows the strength of the premiership. That’s a positive for us. It’s provoked headlines all around the world. It shows the position we have. We have to capitalise on that.

 

BBC: Do you think you have to try and convince people it’s not about money?

 

Keith Wyness: It’s about the position of the Premiership as the league, money will come from that, there’s no doubt but there’s also then the power to do great community work and programmes that come with the responsibility of being in the top league. There’s a much broader issue, it has to be thought about as well.

 

So to summarise, Keith Wyness is like an old girl on Walton Lane raising her skirt to any country that wants to host a Premier League game.

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He's a proper mony man an has no understanding of the soul of football.

 

The sad thing is theres so much money around football clubs want business acumen not understanding of football these days, having said that if theres so much money why do we need to sell out for a few quid more.

 

We're rich already this is just greed!

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