By Andrew Warshaw
March 27 – The head of the umbrella body of Europe’s clubs has confirmed that talks over revamping the Champions League’ beyond 2024 are underway with UEFA but remains tight-lipped over what any future format might look like.
Earlier this month, amid increasing speculation about a European Super League, European Club Association (ECA) board members met with UEFA officials for what was described as a “barnstorming” session.
Unconfirmed reports said subjects discussed included the idea of relegation and promotion that would replace the current qualification system and games being moved from midweek slots to the weekend, seriously undermining national league fixtures.
“We have now launched the process to develop a vision for the future of UEFA Club competitions post-2024,” ECA chairman Andrea Agnelli told reporters following the body’s general assembly in Amsterdam this week.
“This is the start of a journey that will see further and deep engagement with all professional game stakeholders, prior to reaching any formal decisions.”
Agnelli denied that UEFA’s elite tournament was in danger of turning into a closed-shop Super League, describing it instead as a Super-Champions League. He stressed that far from planning a breakaway, his members were in full co-operation with European football’s governing body yet he did not rule out promotion and relegation, saying this was “natural within the football environment.”
Currently, the Europa League winner qualifies for the next season’s Champions League. The winner of a third-tier competition launching in 2021 will also be promoted to the subsequent Europa League.
Agnelli said it would take roughly “12 to 18 months” to decide how UEFA’s club competitions will look from 2024.
When it came to the idea of weekend games, the Juventus supremo kept his cards close to his chest, referring only to the status quo of the Champions League final. “So far there is one weekend game, and that will surely stay on the weekend,” he said before adding, cryptically, “it is certainly something that is logical to an open system. “
The ECA is also pushing to have fewer, but longer, call ups for national team duty, such as two release periods instead of three from September to November.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1714028503labto1714028503ofdlr1714028503owedi1714028503sni@w1714028503ahsra1714028503w.wer1714028503dna1714028503