Government in talks to promote British players

Nov 14, 2007, 10:51 GMT

London - Discussions have begun between football's Premier League and senior advisers to prime minister Gordon Brown about ways of regulating the influx of foreign players to the Premiership, The Guardian daily revealed on Wednesday.

The issue, which has rumbled on for most of the past decade, has come to a head with England in serious danger of failing to qualify for Euro 2008, something blamed in part on the low numbers of English players playing in the Premier League.

The world governing football FIFA has proposed a quota on foreign players, something backed by Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson. But that plan is thought to be unworkable under international law.

Europe's body UEFA has a slightly differing scheme, whereby a club would have to include a certain number of home-grown players in their match-day squad - similar to a ruling already in place in Scotland.

From next season teams playing in European competition will have to include eight home-grown players in their 25-man squads, but there is no regulation about their 18-man matchday squads.

The Premier League opposes quotas, but believes more could be done to encourage skills-coaching at a young age.

Ways of ensuring a strong British presence in academies at the 14-16 age group are also be considered.