Champions League restructuring

[RichardBatchelor]

It’s a disgrace and I’m angry - but there are positives, such as not having to lose twice a year to Man Utd following the inevitable dodgy penalty.

[nigel]

So do they want to play in this new league as well as staying in the PL?

Also they obviously wouldn’t be able to play in the CL?

I read it as they would play this league instead of the Champions League.
So, basically, smaller countries won’t get a look in, as they reckon it will be 15 clubs plus 5 invites for the season. I’m guessing 3 of the 5 would be England, Spain & Italy

[SamTheMouse]

My instinctive reaction is to tell them to fuck off and don't come back. Footballl is about so much more than a handful of clubs that somehow think they're bigger than the game itself.

Let them go and play in their soulless, jeopardy-free, closed shop. Football will survive without them. It might even become a bit more interesting.

[Chris Smith]

Only someone who truly hates football can be behind a European super league...

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2021/apr/18/only-someone-who-truly-hates-football-can-be-behind-a-european-super-league

[ADVILLAFAN]

On the bright side, if we fuck these 6 teams out of the League, Villa are the most successful team in the country.

[Rigadon]

It's difficult to articulate just how slimy this all is.  On the face of it it's just a continuation / escalation of the current status quo (best players playing for richest clubs in Europe, bit of a closed-shop already), but the real difference is the fact it's an actual closed-shop.  No relegation... FFS! 

If it goes ahead, it will change the game completely and irreversibly and I just don't think there is anything like the popular support for doing that outside of a small number of billionaire owners. 

[manic-road]

This is a kick in the guts for all teams in the football pyramid, the flow down of money is pitiful as it is, the Premier League teams were very reluctant to allow £30m in emergency funding during the pandemic to be given to smaller clubs which has helped them to remain in existence, which shows they don’t care at all about the lower feeder clubs which are the lifeblood of the game.

These so called big 6 have to be kicked out of the Premier League although I don’t think it will happen as the league is run by the Premier Leagues club chairmen. The huge amounts of money being offered to these clubs will give them even more financial clout to remain the most competitive clubs in the league which to me is an unfair advantage. Clubs like Villa, Leicester, Everton will find it even harder to break into the top half of the league or even to barely compete.

[JD]

Wonder what the players think about this, if this goes ahead and players from these teams are banned from playing for their country.

Might see lots of players wanting to leave these teams if that happens.

[nigel]

Football will survive without these clubs.
It will certainly open up the Prem, and cups, for a host of other clubs to win.

[ChicagoLion]

There is no chance that these clubs will disappear, as much as we all would love it to happen.

[JD]

Football will survive without these clubs.
It will certainly open up the Prem, and cups, for a host of other clubs to win.

Yes, none of them were there when the league first started so I won't shed any tears over any of them.

[JD]

There is no chance that these clubs will disappear, as much as we all would love it to happen.

They've already disappeared up their own backsides. 

[cdbearsfan]

There is no chance that these clubs will disappear, as much as we all would love it to happen.

Then I will. If they are allowed to stay in the Premier League while having guaranteed Super League football regardless of performance, the game is dead to me.

[ChicagoLion]

There is no chance that these clubs will disappear, as much as we all would love it to happen.

They've already disappeared up their own backsides.

True.

But people speculating that they will somehow not be around is nonsense.

[ChicagoLion]

There is no chance that these clubs will disappear, as much as we all would love it to happen.

Then I will. If they are allowed to stay in the Premier League while having guaranteed Super League football regardless of performance, the game is dead to me.

That is not going to happen, but I do think a compromise which gives them more money and power is likely. UEFA and Leagues like the PL hold the stronger position at this point.