What ails European football?

European Football in crisis. 

Twelve major football clubs announced a new European Super League, last Sunday, breaking away from the UEFA Champions League and prompting an angry response from fans, politicians and their domestic leagues. Let's go through the key factors.....

What's the problem?

Twelve clubs, from Real Madrid to Tottenham, got together to become founding members of a new competition. A further three founding clubs will join, with five other clubs getting to play in a league-cum-knockout competition from August. Five of the 20 clubs would qualify based on what they do in their domestic leagues the previous season.

Is this the Champions League in a new name?

No. Europe's biggest clubs do not want to play in a UEFA-controlled tournament because of serious misgivings with the organisation. It's likely that they want more control which UEFA aren't ready to give at this point. They also want more money and more of the'elite' teams to qualify for the Champions League irrespective of their performance in the prior season. UEFA, which itself announced sweeping reforms on Monday, weren't prepared to fully bow to the elite.

How will it work?

Two groups of 10 teams each playing each other in a home-away format with the top three teams in each group presumably advancing to play in the knockout stages, with the play-off games to decide the other two slots. There will be mid-week games, at least for the 18 group stage matches each club will now play. The rebel clubs want to keep playing in their domestic league. But it's likely that they will stop playing in at least one of the domestic cups going forward.

What is the position of the Leagues?

Seething with righteous anger, Premier League, Serie A, La Liga issued strongly worded responses, with some leading lights wanting to already sanction clubs for going behind their backs. There exists the possibility of the leagues not accepting the clubs' positions. If that happens, expect lawyers from both sides. One thing though, the already rich will become super rich because all the founder members have been promised close to $400 mn already. The disparity will be huge. It's already huge and even the likes of Boris Johnson, the British PM and Emmanuel Macron, France's President have attacked the plan.

What's behind all this?

Money. Europe's top clubs have long agitated for the income that guaranteed, annual competition against their fellow powers would bring. Currently, they have to qualify for the Champions League by placing high in their domestic competitions and then make it through the season-long tournament to reach the high-profile latter stages. 

The founding clubs are expected to receive more than 10 billion euros in uncapped 'solidarity payments'. They will also receive 3.5 billion euros for infrastructure investment and to offset their losses from the pandemic. By comparison, UEFA competitions generated 3.2 billion euros in TV earnings in the pre-pandemic 2018-'19 season.

How does the Champions League feel about this?

Anger would be an understatement. But, to be fair, this was an inevitability of the system that UEFA themselves helped create in collusion with the big clubs. They played appeasement politics and gave everything the big clubs asked for. This was going to be the logical endgame. If the Super League does see the cold light of day, it's possible to see the eventual destruction of the Champions League as we know it as a product. The irony in this is that three of the four clubs who want to exit the Champions League will play in the semifinals in this year's edition!

Who are the leading drivers behind this move?

Reuters reported that JP Morgan are financing the league. But the ones who are really leading the push is Real Madrid and Manchester United, the elite of the European game. Others like Arsenal and Spurs, whose recent level is nowhere 'Super' probably signed on because this is an opportunity to make more money, considering there will be no consequences for their under performances on the pitch. In that aspect, it's proper Americanisation of football from a club to a franchise model after 140 good years.

Why are Bayern and PSG giving it a miss?

Bayern would face difficulties convincing its fans and members, who have a majority say in club business. PSG's Qatari owners could be wary of disrupting next year's World Cup - which will be played in Qatar - and a lucrative UEFA broadcast deal if there's a civil war in European soccer. Dortmund said it and Bayern rejected the Super League in favour of reforming the existing Champions League.

Courtesy. The NIE.

My take.

Sad to see greed taking charge of the lovely game of football!

Tailpiece. 

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. The well-washing team consisted of Subra, Appu and Ramesh. They had finished their job by a quarter to 11.

Participated in the webinar : "Self Employment through Skilling" by N Balagopal, Vice Chairman, PN Panicker Vigyan Vikas Kendra from 1030 - 1130 hrs. Interesting and was pleasantly surprised to see almost the entire lot of participants being young.

Jayan of the National Supermarket delivered the grocery on the dot, for the first time. He seems to have found a good assistant in Navin.