Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is an American and as such, he has a very American idea for a new event in the Premier League: an all-star game.
Speaking on Tuesday in New York at the SALT Conference, Boehly suggested the idea as a spectacle for fans as well as a fundraiser for the lower divisions in England.
Boehly also said the Premier League could take a page from some other European leagues which hold a playoff to determine promotion and relegation.
“Ultimately I hope that the Premier League takes a little bit of a lesson from American sports and really starts to figure out why wouldn’t we do a tournament with the bottom four teams, why isn’t there an all-star game?” Boehly asked.
Boehly, who is also a co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, added: “People are talking about more money for the pyramid — MLB [Major League Baseball] did their All-Star Game in L.A. this year, we made $200 million from a Monday and a Tuesday. You could do a north versus south all-star game for the Premier League to fund whatever the pyramid needed very easily.”
All-star games, of course, are mostly the province of American sports leagues. The MLS All-Star Game has featured all-star teams from MLS and Liga MX facing off in the last two seasons.
When asked if Europeans would go for an American-style all-star game, Boehly acknowledged “there’s a cultural aspect that’s real” that could stand in the way, but added his belief that “there’s going to be an evolution.”
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