UEFA president Michel Platini revealed his plans for financial reforms in European soccer on Thursday that could signal the end of “sugar daddies” buying into the game and transforming the fortunes of a club.
The key to Platini’s vision of what he has called “financial fair play” is for all clubs to be made to only spend what they earn in soccer revenues and he says he has the backing of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich and other rich club owners.
The rules, which UEFA is still formulating and which will not be in place at least until 2012, would also mean owners such as Manchester City’s Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan would not be able to make huge gifts of cash to their clubs.
The clubs would, according to Platini, “have to live within their means instead.”
Platini told a news conference: “We have everyone on board with this, the owners, the players, the leagues, the national associations.”
“If a club can get loans from a bank to buy players and is able to pay back bank loans then it is not a problem. But if a club gets a lot of money or subsidies from a big backer and is still in deficit in two years then it is a problem and we don’t want that,” he said.
Platini added that an independent panel would be set up to judge whether clubs had broken the rules.
Many of Europe’s top clubs have huge debts, with Real Madrid having an estimated debt of 563 million euros (US$800 million) up to the end of the 2007-2008 season. Financial experts have estimated Real’s current debt could run to around 900 million euros following their close season spending spree.
Premier League club Chelsea reported losses of £65.7 million (US$106.5 million) up to June last year while Red Football, Manchester United’s parent company owned by the Glazer family, recorded a £21 million loss last year and has a total debt of £575 million.
Platini said he had the backing of club owners.
“It’s mainly the owners that asked us to do something — Roman Abramovich, [AC Milan’s] Silvio Berlusconi, [Inter’s] Massimo Moratti, They do not want to fork out from their pockets any more,” he said.
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