Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy open to playing Premier League matches abroad

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is "open minded" about playing Premier League matches overseas.

Proposals for a so-called '39th game' abroad were shelved by Premier League chiefs but other countries are pushing ahead with the concept.

LaLiga's revamped four-team Supercopa was played in Saudi Arabia this season, while there have been discussions over playing the Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona overseas.

In an interview with Varsity, the Cambridge University student newspaper, Levy said: "It’s important that we are always open-minded to anything that is proposed. We are in an industry where we are competing for talent, viewership and sponsors with other leagues across the world alongside other sports so we can never rule it out completely. In Spain, they are playing the Supercopa in Saudi Arabia this year, so we’ve got to be conscious that there needs to be a balance."

The Spurs chairman, who has brokered a lucrative deal with Amazon Prime to make a fly-on-the-wall documentary about the club's stuttering season, has also backed the tech giant's entry into football broadcasting and revealed his opposition to the Saturday 3pm TV blackout.

No Premier League, Football League or FA Cup matches can be broadcast on live television between 2:45pm and 5:15pm on Saturday in the UK.

The rule has been in place since the 1960s, ostensibly to protect attendances at lower-profile matches, but no other countries observe a blackout and Levy is among those who would like to see Saturday afternoon matches back on TV.

"Personally, I’m not so wedded to something that is so historic," Levy said. "Just because it has always been there doesn’t mean it needs to be there forever. I think it is something that could be looked at in the future.

"The fact there is now a third domestic broadcaster in the UK is great for competition," Levy added of Amazon. "Any new broadcaster coming in will always look at things in a different way. The way they’ve been doing their live broadcasting has created quite a bit of attention so I think other broadcasters may also look to adapt the way they produce their coverage too. Competition is good for everyone."