Lausanne (AFP)
The association of European Football Leagues denounced Tuesday the project of closed super-league defended by the boss of Real Madrid, where "only a part of the richest clubs would be invited".
According to the New York Times in its edition last Thursday, Florentino Perez, President of Real Madrid, with the support of Fifa President Gianni Infantino, proposes to create two divisions, each grouping 20 teams from the five major European leagues (Germany, England Spain, France and Italy). Some other clubs would be invited from other championships, such as Ajax Amsterdam or FC Porto.
This closed continental league, with a system of promotion / relegation between the two divisions, would guarantee spectacular and lucrative posters, to the detriment of private national championships of their flagship clubs.
European leagues who say they are "tired of threats from a few rich clubs" believe that "professional football clubs is not a private economic activity, reserved for a few selected only on the depth of their portfolio."
Football is "a sport and not primarily a field for financial investments (...) The solution is not a league closed at the top of the pyramid ... where only part of the richest clubs would be invited, "Judge Lars-Christer Olsson, President of the European Leagues, in a statement.
The closed league project, which regularly returns to the table, has been sharply criticized by UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, who also sees it as a threat to the Champions League.
Former Portuguese international Luis Figo gave him his support on Tuesday. He believes that a closed league will "kill the prestige and excitement surrounding the national championships for both fans and players".
For Figo, the Champions League "will remain the pinnacle of club football" and "those who think they can overtake will fail".
© 2019 AFP