NBA Commissioner David Stern says the Premiership must play it's biggest games overseas if it's to remain football's most popular competition.

Stern, the NBA's main man for 25 years, said: "When the idea of a 39th soccer match in England was spoken of, the reaction was like it was treason.

"Richard Scudamore is an imaginative CEO. The result of being imaginative is that you can expect lots of criticism. We laugh about some of the things we have to deal with.

"In fairness, there are only 19 home games in the Premier League. We have 41 home games. So, losing one or two may not be as important.

"But I look at clubs like Real Madrid in other countries who pay a lot of money for players and you have to make sure you can compete with those financial forces.

"The 39th game would work and I think it will happen. Americans flock to friendlies of Manchester United or Chelsea, so would love a league match.

"The EPL has the largest turnover but you have to find ways to build a brand like we have done in NBA, which is now watched in 215 countries."