A European Super League - allegedly discussed by Man Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Man City executives in London yesterday - would 'destroy football as we know it', according to Premier League rival.
Five of England's biggest club are reportedly in secret talks to break away from the Premier League and join a European Super League.Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal discussed the long-mooted shake-up with American billionaire Stephen Ross at London's Dorchester hotel on Tuesday, The Sun reported.
According to the newspaper, Old Trafford
executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck,
Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis, Manchester City’s chief executive
Ferran Soriano and Liverpool’s Ian Ayre took part in the meeting.
Mr Ross, an American real estate developer who created the pre-season
International Champions Cup in the US, China and Australia, hopes to
wrap up a deal shortly, the newspaper said.
The concept of such a league, which would see England's top clubs join Europe's elite including Barcelona and Real Madrid, has long been debated.Three years ago, the chairman of Turkish club Galatasaray said Europe’s biggest clubs were actively plotting to set up a “closed” competition of the continent’s 20 top teams. Unal Aysal said at the time such a league would be formed within five years.
The move would guarantee hundreds of millions of pounds for Europe's top clubs, some of whom do not always qualify for the lucrative Champions League.This season, both Chelsea and Liverpool are expected to miss out on a Champions League place, while Manchester United are three points off the top four.
A breakaway league would spell the end of the Champions League and have a huge impact on the Premier League.The English competition currently enjoys a TV deal which guarantees £100 million per club for the next three years. The departure of the biggest clubs would see that revenue severely diminish, impacting the remaining clubs as well as having a knock-on effect on the whole league.
West Ham United co-chairman David Sullivan told Telegraph Sport: “It would destroy football as we know it. It’s so sad that five clubs all owned by foreigners are even considering it.
“If the Premier League champions were not included, it would lose its gloss very quickly in the eyes of supporters.
“Also, if there was no relegation, everything other than the top of the division would be boring by mid-season.”Uefa has been under increasing pressure from the European Club
Association to reform the continent's top club competition to ensure
teams with the greatest TV appeal have a guaranteed place.
Uefa said in a statement: “Uefa constantly reviews the format of its competitions in close consultation with stakeholders, including the European Club Association. There are no concrete proposals on the table at this stage as we have just begun a new three-year cycle (2015-18) for club competitions. There is therefore no further comment to be made at this stage.”
An ECA spokesperson said: “There’s a lot of discussion around the future of European competitions at the moment, as always ahead of a new competition cycle. Discussions are taking place at different levels but, for the moment, nothing concrete was brought up at ECA. However, there’s an agreement that, once an idea or proposal gets more concrete, it will be shared with the entire executive board.”
ECA and Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge resurrected talk of a Super League back in January.That prompted a response from Gianni Infantino, who was Uefa’s general
secretary at the time and last week became president of Fifa.“The Super League already exists,” Infantino said. “It’s called the Champions League.”
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| Manchester City's chief executive Ferran Soriano reportedly took part in the meeting with Stephen Ross |
The concept of such a league, which would see England's top clubs join Europe's elite including Barcelona and Real Madrid, has long been debated.Three years ago, the chairman of Turkish club Galatasaray said Europe’s biggest clubs were actively plotting to set up a “closed” competition of the continent’s 20 top teams. Unal Aysal said at the time such a league would be formed within five years.
The move would guarantee hundreds of millions of pounds for Europe's top clubs, some of whom do not always qualify for the lucrative Champions League.This season, both Chelsea and Liverpool are expected to miss out on a Champions League place, while Manchester United are three points off the top four.
 |
| Chelsea, who won the Champions League in 2012, were reported to be represented at the meeting to discuss a European Super League. |
A breakaway league would spell the end of the Champions League and have a huge impact on the Premier League.The English competition currently enjoys a TV deal which guarantees £100 million per club for the next three years. The departure of the biggest clubs would see that revenue severely diminish, impacting the remaining clubs as well as having a knock-on effect on the whole league.
West Ham United co-chairman David Sullivan told Telegraph Sport: “It would destroy football as we know it. It’s so sad that five clubs all owned by foreigners are even considering it.
“If the Premier League champions were not included, it would lose its gloss very quickly in the eyes of supporters.
 |
| David Sullivan (left, with West Ham co-owner David Gold) |
Uefa said in a statement: “Uefa constantly reviews the format of its competitions in close consultation with stakeholders, including the European Club Association. There are no concrete proposals on the table at this stage as we have just begun a new three-year cycle (2015-18) for club competitions. There is therefore no further comment to be made at this stage.”
An ECA spokesperson said: “There’s a lot of discussion around the future of European competitions at the moment, as always ahead of a new competition cycle. Discussions are taking place at different levels but, for the moment, nothing concrete was brought up at ECA. However, there’s an agreement that, once an idea or proposal gets more concrete, it will be shared with the entire executive board.”
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| This could be an early test for new Fifa president Gianni Infantino |
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