FIFA president Gianni Infantino yesterday said that breakaway European Super League clubs cannot be “half in, half out” of the established soccer system, while Real Madrid president Florentino Perez insisted he is trying to “save football” with the move.
European soccer’s governing body UEFA has threatened to ban the 12 clubs, who include Manchester United and Real Madrid, from domestic and international competition, with Infantino adding his voice to the backlash.
“We strongly disapprove ... if some go their own way then they must live with the consequences of their choice, either you are in, or you are out. You cannot be half in and half out,” Infantino told UEFA’s congress in Montreux, Switzerland.
Photo: AP
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has not held back on his views of the renegade clubs, who would be guaranteed places in the new competition in contrast to the UEFA Champions League, which requires teams to qualify via their domestic leagues.
However, having labeled the competition a “spit in the face” of soccer fans, Ceferin insisted that there is still time for reconciliation.
“I would like to address the owners of some English clubs. Gentlemen, you made a huge mistake,” he said at the UEFA congress. “Some will say it is greed, others disdain, arrogance or complete ignorance of England’s football culture, but actually it doesn’t matter.”
“What matters is that there is still time to change your mind, everyone makes mistakes. English fans deserve to have you correct your mistake, they deserve respect,” Ceferin said.
At the same congress, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said that the existing structure of European sports is under threat by self-interest and pure commercialism.
“It is challenged by a purely profit-driven approach that ignores the ... social values of sports and real needs in the post-coronavirus world,” IOC president Thomas Bach said.
There have been few voices that have backed the breakaway league, with owners of the 12 teams conspicuous by their absence.
The first senior figure of any club involved to publicly talk about the move was Perez — the new chairman of the Super League — who said soccer needed to evolve and adapt to the times.
“Whenever there is a change, there are always people who oppose it ... and we are doing this to save football at this critical moment,” Perez said on the Spanish TV show El Chiringuito de Jugones.
“Audiences are decreasing and rights are decreasing, and something had to be done. We are all ruined. Television has to change so we can adapt,” he said.
“Young people are no longer interested in football. Why not? Because there are a lot of poor quality games and they are not interested, they have other platforms on which to distract themselves,” Perez said.
English Premier League clubs were meeting without the “Big Six” who have joined the breakaway league. The meeting was expected to decide on a strategy to be taken by the remaining 14 clubs to protect the Premier League and their interests.
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson held a meeting with representatives from the English Football Association, the Premier League and fan groups at which he said that the government would not stand by and allow the creation of a closed shop.
“He reiterated his unwavering support for the football authorities and confirmed they have the government’s full backing to take whatever action necessary to put a stop to these plans,” Johnson’s office said in a statement. “He was clear that no action is off the table and the government is exploring every possibility, including legislative options, to ensure these proposals are stopped.”
Jobe Bellingham on Tuesday admitted to having “anxieties” on following in brother Jude’s footsteps after joining Borussia Dortmund in the summer. Jobe Bellingham, 19, is two years younger than Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in 2023 after three years at Dortmund. A centerpiece of the England national team, Jude Bellingham has emerged as one of the best players in the world in recent seasons. The younger Jobe Bellingham joined Dortmund in June from Sunderland after their promotion to the English Premier League. He admitted he understood what the perception would be ahead of the move to Germany. “It’s something you do think about.
Before Tuesday’s 7-2 win at the Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy suggested “most people couldn’t tell you five players on our team.” A look at the standings would indicate more Brewers players soon will be recognized by more fans. After all, it is difficult to overlook a team that not only continues to extend their lead in the National League Central, but also boasts the best record in the majors. “What we’re doing in here right now is special,” right-handed pitcher Freddy Peralta said after allowing only four hits and one run in five innings, while setting a career high with
A baseball team from New Taipei City won the US Pony Palomino Division World Series yesterday in Laredo, Texas, defeating the US West representative team from Azusa, California, 2-1. Ku-Pao Home Economics and Commercial High School earned the right to represent Taiwan in the Pony Palomino (17 to 18 age group) World Series after winning this year's Wang Chen-chih Cup, a competition named after Taiwanese-Japanese baseball legend Wang Chen-chih (王貞治), also known as Sadaharu Oh. In the championship game against Azusa, Ku-Pao's starting pitcher Luo Yu-yan (羅于晏) was erratic early, giving up two hits in the bottom of the first inning, followed
Taiwanese pitcher Teng Kai-wei took the mound in New York on Saturday as the starting pitcher for the San Francisco Giants in his MLB season debut against the New York Mets, pitching 3.1 innings and allowing five runs. The Taiwanese right-hander struggled early, giving up three runs in the bottom of the first inning, including a three-run homer to Mets slugger Pete Alonso — his 250th career home run. However, Teng was not fazed and soon found his footing, holding the Mets scoreless in the bottom of the second and third innings. Meanwhile, Mets starter Kodai Senga of Japan made a few errors
RSS