Clicky
Sports, Football

Infantino not interested in European Super League


Bangladeshpost
Published : 22 Oct 2020 08:07 PM

Fifa president Gianni Infantino has declared he is not interested in a European “Super League” after it emerged Manchester United and Liverpool were among five Premier League clubs targeted in a renewed attempt to launch a closed-shop breakaway competition, reports AFP.

Real Madrid president this week appeared to seize upon the financial turmoil of the coronavirus crisis and fall-out surrounding ‘Project Big Picture’ by reviving attempts to entice the elite to join him in walking away from the Champions League.

The plot was said to be backed by Fifa, with financiers assembling a new £4.6 billion funding package to assist the creation of what could be known as the European Premier League.

But in comments published by Aargauer Zeitung and other Swiss media, Infantino said he was focused on the success of the revamped Club World Cup, which will feature 24 teams and be held for the first time in China in 2022.

“As Fifa president, I’m interested in the Club World Cup, not the Super League,” he said.

“For me, it’s not about Bayern Munich against Liverpool, but Bayern against Boca Juniors.

“Liverpool have 180 million fans worldwide. Flamengo have 40 million fans and 39 million of them are in Brazil. Liverpool have maybe 5 million fans in England and 175 million fans around the world,” he added.

“I want clubs from outside Europe to have global appeal in the future. That’s my vision: to have 50 clubs and 50 national teams who can become world champions.”

Uefa was bullish about seeing off the rebel proposals on Tuesday night, pointing out it was the third time Pérez’s plan has surfaced in just two years.

A day later, United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward appeared to distance himself from the proposals, saying: “I saw the reports on that and candidly don’t know where that story came from.”

Woodward did confirm Telegraph Sport’s revelations that Europe’s top clubs were in talks with Uefa about radical plans to increase the size of the Champions League to 36 teams from 2024.

“There was a story in the press a few days ago about whether the Champions League might go to 36 teams,” Woodward added during a conference call with investors to discuss United’s full year accounts for 2019-20. “They’re the conversations that we are actually involved in.