Platini vs the European Super League

By: Daryl | March 18th, 2009

Remember the European Super League? The idea for a hyper-exclusive breakaway league featuring Europe’s top clubs was often talked about/threatened by the G-14.

It would have been great for the clubs involved, but not so great for the domestic leagues that lost their big clubs.

The whole Super League idea was expected to disappear after the G14 disbanded in February 2008, but seems not. Because rumours of a European Super League to replace the Champions League and UEFA Cup resurfaced in the press recently.

Both France Football and Gazzetta dello Sport recently reported that the European Clubs Association (basically the G14’s successor) had brought up the European Super League idea at the UEFA meeting in Nyon, Switzerland. And that Michel Platini was prepared to discuss it.

France Football quoted Platini as saying:

“Everybody knows my philosophy about European competitions… but the world is changing and we must be careful about that.”

“If it was up to me, I would revert to European Cups as they were at the beginning, with just knockout rounds. But we must listen carefully to any suggestion. If (clubs) come and talk to us, we would listen to them and then decide.”

But UEFA’s PR department was quick to try and kill that rumour yesterday:

“People should not mix-up the philosophy and reality. As far as the president (Platini) is concerned such a proposal (super league) is a non-starter,” a senior official close to Platini told Reuters.

“He (Platini) is always open to dialogue and to look at ways of adapting and improving UEFA competitions in line with the times. But he has his own philosophy and beliefs about the game and one such belief is that he is dead set against a super league.”

For their part, the ECA are said to be “very happy” with the current setup of European competitions. Which isn’t really a surprise when they’re making so much cash from the Champions League.

There’s no doubt a European Super League would damage domestic football to some extent. And if it really was a league format, then it would lack the immediate excitement of the Champions League knockout rounds (which is where it really gets good, if you ask me). Really, wouldn’t a Super League just be one big long Champions League Group Stage?