By Paul Nicholson
August 7- Yesterday the European Club Association (ECA) triumphantly claimed the new UEFA Champions League qualification format a big success for the future of (big) club football in Europe, today the first voices of dissent declare the decision to automatically qualify the top four clubs from the top four European leagues a “detrimental” decision for European football.
And tomorrow they will have the opportunity to make their feelings known to the two remaining UEFA presidential candidates – Aleksander Ceferin and Michael van Pragg – in Copenhagen when they present to the Nordic federations. Van Praag was a key member of the negotiating team that came up with the new qualification rules and is UEFA’s representative to the board of TEAM that sells the commercial rights to the UEFA club competitions.
The Danish League (Divisionsforeningen) and the Danish Football Association (DBU) are calling for the decision to be reversed arguing that it is a structure that favors the biggest clubs in the major leagues while the clubs in the remaining leagues have had their qualification chances impaired.
They say the decision on a new format is detrimental for Danish and European football.
“The process was wrong; the result is wrong. A fundamental change of the format has been rushed through UEFA and the ECA (European Club Association) even though a new UEFA President will be elected in a weeks’ time and even though there are no publicly elected leadership in UEFA,” said Claus Thomsen, CEO of the Danish League and vice-president of the association of European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL), states.
“The process reflects a change that initially moves huge amounts to the 20 biggest clubs in Europe and at the same time ensures that sporting success of others cannot change it. The price is paid by the rest of Football-Europe, damaging all national tournaments. Furthermore, we expect the second round of reforms to be in the like of a European Super League and by establishing it under a joint company, co-owned by the ECA and UEFA, it is ensured that no competitor can prevail.”
Jesper Møller, president of the Danish Football Association (DBU), will confront the UEFA presidential candidates with the issue at the Copenhagen meeting.
“I am deeply displeased with the decision on a new Champions League; it is unsatisfactory as well as unacceptable. The decision has been taken in way which is out of step with proper and democratic decision-making, the result being that UEFA leaves too much power to the richest clubs in Europe. It is harmful for the development of football in the whole of Europe and to a great extent in Denmark too,” said Møller.
Møller says Denmark will chose which candidate they will vote for after he has heard the candidates. In a press release he also says he wants to discuss issues such as “good governance, transparency, human rights and reforms of UEFA, finance and sporting visions, especially within women’s football”.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1714652903labto1714652903ofdlr1714652903owedi1714652903sni@n1714652903osloh1714652903cin.l1714652903uap1714652903