Clubs delay '39th game' decision

Premier League clubs have delayed a final decision on the controversial "39th game" proposal after discussions at their summer meeting on Thursday.

Three clubs, including Liverpool and Manchester United, are fiercely opposed to the idea of the 20 top-flight clubs playing an additional match overseas.

No agreement could be reached but the proposal has not been ruled out.

The 20 club chairmen did agree to ask Premier League officials to explore other options to strengthen the brand.

They include pre-season tournaments involving Premier League clubs in foreign cities.

League officials watched with interest last July as a crowd of 40,000 in Hong Kong watched Portsmouth beat Liverpool on penalties in the Barclays Asia Trophy.

It is believed one proposal would be to extend these branded friendly competitions to other areas such as the Middle East, South Africa and the USA.

Premier League clubs did ratify a new rule to outlaw third-party ownership of players to avoid future controversies such as the Carlos Tevez saga.

In future, clubs will have to buy out all third-party owners so that they own players' registrations completely.

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