By CNN
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New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has said he would “love to think” that English Premier League and Champions League matches could be staged in the US – mirroring what the NFL has done with its International Series games.
English soccer giants Arsenal and Manchester United recently played a friendly against each other in New Jersey. This coincided with the Premier League Summer Series in the US, featuring six teams from the Premier League, including Chelsea, Fulham and Newcastle.
The idea of an international “39th game” in the Premier League season was met with extreme resistance when the organization’s former Chief Executive Officer Richard Scudamore tried to push forward with the proposal in 2008, but Murphy believes that, if a top-flight English game came stateside, it would prove popular.
“I would assume that Man United and Arsenal view this as a good brand, putting your best players out there, 82,000 fans in New York, New Jersey. I’d love to think that it would happen,” said Murphy during a media briefing.
New York/New Jersey has been selected as one of the host venues for the 2026 Men’s World Cup, with matches played at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ, which hosts two million guests annually.
“Future generations of New Jerseyans will remember fondly that, on the heels of a global pandemic, the biggest sporting event in the world was hosted by the greatest region in the world,” said Murphy last year. “In addition to building upon our lasting global legacy, as a host region, we will also benefit from significant economic activity and impact, as well as opportunities to showcase the rich cultural diversity of our state.”
On European soccer potentially coming to the US, Murphy also cited the success of the NFL International Series. This initiative has seen games held in the United Kingdom, Germany and Mexico, all with huge crowds and an even bigger demand for tickets.
“I tell you what’s a good model: the NFL. As you all know, they play real games in Europe with great success,” Murphy explained.
“I’m a New England Patriots fan and they are playing the Indianapolis Colts in Frankfurt in November. The stadium is not that big, only 55,000 seats, and they had demand for 700,000 tickets.”
Murphy believes that if a competitive European soccer game were to go stateside it could have the same impact as the NFL International Series.
“I would just appeal either to the Champions League, if that’s UEFA, and play a game here. I can say unequivocally, we would die to have a real competitive game anywhere in America. If it was in New York-New Jersey, you wouldn’t get near that game. It would be overwhelming. To have a Champions League game, you wouldn’t be able to get near it.”
UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin has previously hinted that a Champions League Final could be hosted in the US.
“It is possible. We started to discuss about that, but then one year, it is the World Cup, 2024 is Euro, this year is Istanbul, ’24 in London, ‘25 in Munich,” Čeferin said on the Men in Blazers podcast.
“And after that, let’s see. It’s possible, it’s possible. Football is extremely popular in United States these days.”
