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Now Premier League, soon Super League?
Liverpool versus Arsenal
Photo: Julian Finney / AP
Shortly before the decision on a far-reaching reform for the Champions League, an alliance of European clubs is building up the threat of a super league again.
According to dpa information, clubs from Italy, Spain and England are pursuing this plan, contrary to the decision of the European Football Union Uefa planned for Monday.
The German record champions FC Bayern should not be involved - as well as the French champion Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City.
The foundation is probably imminent - a horror scenario for the European Football Union.
Allegedly, twelve clubs are said to have already signed a corresponding letter of intent, and it could start as early as 2022.
“If this is true, it will have a huge impact on the game.
Huge «, commented England football idol Gary Lineker on Twitter the rumors.
According to the Times, the renegades include five top English clubs: Liverpool FC, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal FC and Chelsea FC.
The Spanish top teams Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona have shown their interest as well as Juventus Turin and AC Milan from Italy.
German teams like Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund or the French Primus Paris St. Germain should not be involved.
Plans could result in bans
The plans come at an inopportune time for Uefa.
The Champions League reform planned for 2024 should actually prevent such outbreaks of elite clubs.
In Germany, the ideas of a Super League have so far not met with much approval.
The fans, the league itself and even the top clubs that might benefit from it had so far strictly opposed it.
Christian Seifert, the managing director of the German Football League (DFL), commented on the new plans.
Seifert stated that the DFL rejects "any concept of a European Super League".
He also warned against "irreparably damaging" the national leagues in favor of the economic interests of individual big clubs.
The Uefa strongly condemned the plans to establish a super league.
In a joint statement with the national leagues and associations from England, Spain and Italy, the association declared that it wanted to stop the "cynical project" with all legal and sporting means.
The English Premier League said it would condemn any proposal that attacks the principle of achievement and the principle of open competition.
The league said in a statement that the overall attractiveness of football would suffer from a Super League.
Fifa had already joined the discussion in January and jumped aside Uefa with the threat of a ban beam.
Such a competition would not be recognized, the world association announced at the time: "Clubs or players who would take part in such a competition are therefore not allowed to take part in any competition organized by Fifa or the respective confederation."
In other words: For the players of Super League clubs, for example, world and European championships would be taboo in the future.
But some clubs do not seem to see this as an insurmountable hurdle.
After all, numerous financially strong sponsors are already showing interest in a Super League, and clubs can expect additional income in the three-digit million range if they participate.
Uefa wants to stick to Champions League plans
The Uefa Executive Committee wants to decide during its meeting on Monday to increase the premier class from 32 to 36 participants and to introduce a new mode. Two of the four new places are no longer to be awarded, as has been the case up to now, based on performances from the previous season. Instead, the placements of the clubs in the UEFA five-year ranking should be decisive. This was a wish of the powerful club association ECA, which sits with two representatives on the executive branch of the Continental Association.
On Friday, a consensus between the ECA and the UEFA Club Competitions Commission (CCC) was reported on the details.
The decision therefore seemed a formality.
According to the Times, Uefa does not want to move away from its plan.
The establishment of a super league was always discussed in recent years when it came to the distribution of TV money in the European Cup.
aha / dpa / sid
