Faced with the revolution fomented by the European Club Association (ECA) which wants more than ever to achieve its project of a competing superleague of the Champions League, hostile positions have multiplied on Sunday, from the boss of the German League, Christian Seifert to that of the Spanish League Javier Tebas, via the English Federation and the powerful Premier League.
"The Premier League strongly condemns any project that goes against open competition based on merit, principles at the heart of European and domestic football," said the English League on Sunday.
"The French State will support all steps (...) to protect the integrity of federal competitions"
Emmanuel Macron
On the fan side, the Football Supporters Europe (FSE) network said it was "fully opposed to the plan to create a secessionist Superleague", claiming that such a closed tournament would be "the last nail in the coffin of European football" in undermining its historical foundations, such as sporting merit as a route to continental competitions. Symbol of the importance of the file, the Elysée took the floor to castigate a project "threatening the principle of solidarity and sporting merit". "The French state will support all steps (...) to protect the integrity of federal competitions, whether national or European," the French presidency told AFP.
In a press release, UEFA announced this Sunday its desire to fight "a cynical project, based on the personal interests of a small number of clubs at a time when society has never needed such solidarity."
And brandishes the threat of exclusion for dissidents, not just from the Champions League: "The clubs concerned will be banned from national, European and world competitions."
According to UEFA, their players could also be deprived of "the opportunity to represent their national team".
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