Birmingham City have reportedly made an audacious bid to take their upcoming League One fixture with Wrexham to the United States.
According to the Daily Mail, Blues bosses raised the prospect of playing their home game with the Hollywood-owned Dragons across the Atlantic, only for the notion to be quickly dismissed by the EFL.
Sources have since told WalesOnline that the proposals were never formally put to authorities, but have confirmed that any such move would have been robustly knocked back by EFL chiefs.
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Nevertheless, the news will once again open up the debate around playing competitive fixtures abroad.
Despite their relegation from the Championship, Birmingham have seen their profile rise in the United States, following the takeover of the club by a US-based group last summer. NFL legend Tom Brady even got involved as a minority investor just a month later, further elevating their popularity.
Wrexham have become wildly popular across the Atlantic themselves thanks to the involvement of Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, as well as the club’s starring role in the smash hit documentary ‘Welcome To Wrexham’.
The Welsh side have already set about growing their fanbase in the United States, taking on big guns like Chelsea and Manchester United stateside last summer. They are set to embark on a similar tour next month.
However, a competitive EFL fixture has never been played abroad, and the concept remains a controversial issue.
The Premier League has long flirted with the idea of taking fixtures abroad, the most notable example being the ill-fated ’39th game’ proposals, which were abandoned following fierce opposition.
However, the appetite for hosting matches has never completely gone away.
Just last month, Liverpool chairman Tom Werner told the Financial Times: “I’m determined one day to have a Premier League game be played in New York City.
“I even have the sort of crazy idea that there would be a day where we play one game in Tokyo, one game a few hours later in Los Angeles, one game a few hours later in Rio, one game a few hours later in Riyadh and make it sort of a day where football, where the Premier League, is celebrated.”
