April 6 – Dutch clubs have put talks about a cross-border league with Belgium on hold, almost certainly bringing an end to the idea.
“The Dutch top clubs – Ajax, PSV, Feyenoord, FC Utrecht, Vitesse and AZ Alkmaar – have determined that there is currently insufficient support among the Dutch professional clubs to set up the BeNeLiga,” wrote the Belgian Pro League in a statement.
In March, a Dutch-Belgian delegation met with UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin to discuss the potential plans, but Dutch clubs now feel that there is simply not enough backing for the league.
A BeNeLiga was first mooted in the mid-1990s, based on the cultural and economic ties between both countries. The idea fleetingly went in and out of the conversation but with the Covid-19 crisis and the 2024 calendar deadline some leading Belgian clubs, including Club Brugge, wanted to advance the idea. They saw it as a way to scale up and generate more revenue in a bigger market.
The general assembly of the Pro League unanimously voted in favour of an ‘agreement in principle’ for the BeNeLiga – that is to keep exploring the idea. “This ambition is based both on the respect of the big clubs’ sporting ambitions and on the need for economic stability for the other professional clubs,” wrote the Pro League last year. “The 25 clubs are unanimous in their desire to give the BeNeLiga a fair chance.”
However, with Dutch clubs withdrawing their support, once again the BeNeLiga seems nothing more than an airy idea.
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