Bernie believes '39th game' is a mistake

Updated 09.06 Thu Feb 14 2008

Keywords: bernie ecclestone, premier league, sport, football

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone claims the Premier League's plans to play an extra football fixture abroad are flawed because few clubs can attract interest overseas.

Ecclestone recently became co-owner of Queens Park Rangers and he is convinced a weekend of foreign fixtures could not capitalise on worldwide interest in the Premier League but he has suggested a tournament involving the top clubs.

"I'd have the top four clubs who are known worldwide and I'd want them playing six matches against each other in a mini-league" - Bernie Ecclestone

He said: "The current idea the Premier League is putting forward isn't very good. They probably wouldn't find it very easy to convince someone in Singapore to have Wigan playing somebody over there. I can't see a promoter going for that.

"But if somebody said to me today 'what would you do?', I'd have the top four clubs who are known worldwide and I'd want them playing six matches against each other in a mini-league.

"I'd run it completely separately and export it to whoever wanted to buy it. Nothing to do with anything. Not sharing the money with any of the rest of the league or anything like that.

"I would be very happy to enter into a contract with those four clubs to run in six events if I could put the events where I wanted to put them."