The English Premier League (EPL) on Monday said it is drawing up a new owners’ charter designed to avoid future attempts to join a breakaway European Super League (ESL) as police launched an investigation into the protest that caused the postponement of Manchester United’s match against Liverpool.
Fans on Sunday invaded Old Trafford and ran onto the pitch as part of a demonstration against United’s owners, the US-based Glazer family.
Greater Manchester Police said six officers were injured after the protests turned “hostile” when demonstrators threw flares, bottles and barriers at police.
Photo: Reuters
One officer sustained a fractured eye socket, another was wounded on their face and a third was “dragged and kicked,” the force said.
A 28-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the incidents.
Anger toward the Glazers has been reignited by United’s part in the failed ESL project, which collapsed within 48 hours last month after a backlash from fans, players, governments and governing bodies.
The ESL sought to guarantee top-level European soccer for 15 founder members every season without the need to qualify.
There have been calls for all six English clubs involved in the formation of the ESL — Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur — to face points penalties.
The Premier League on Monday said it is “determined” to “hold those clubs accountable for their decisions and actions.”
It also announced plans for a new charter, with all club owners signing up to a rule “committing them to the core principles” of the league, with breaches punished by “significant” sanctions.
“The events of the last two weeks have challenged the foundations and resolve of English football,” the Premier League said. “These measures are designed to stop the threat of breakaway leagues in the future.”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, speaking during a campaign visit to the northeast English town of Hartlepool, said: “I don’t think it’s a good idea to have disruptive behavior, demonstrations of that kind, but on the other hand, I do understand people’s strength of feeling.”
“And I think that it’s a good thing that we have been able to do things that make it pretty clear that the European Super League is not going to be appreciated by the people of this country, or by this government,” he said.
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei on Thursday crashed out of the first round of the women’s singles at the Madrid Open, while Ashleigh Barty eased past Shelby Rogers as the world No. 1 prepares to try to reclaim her French Open title in Paris later this month. Veteran world No. 65 Hsieh fell to a 6-2, 6-4 defeat to Tamara Zidansek of Slovenia in 1 hour, 33 minutes in the Spanish capital. The Taiwanese can now concentrate on the doubles, in which she has teamed up with Elise Mertens of Belgium and been handed the No. 1 seeding and a bye into the second
Argentine soccer icon Diego Maradona received inadequate medical care and was left to his fate for a “prolonged, agonizing period” before he died last year, an expert medical panel said on Friday. In a 70-page document, the panel said that Maradona, who succumbed to a heart attack on Nov. 25 last year at the age of 60, “started to die at least 12 hours before” the moment he was found dead in his bed. Maradona died just weeks after undergoing brain surgery on a blood clot. A panel of 20 experts was convened by Argentina’s public prosecutor to examine the cause of death
WEEKEND MATCHES: Hang Yuan FC’s first game against CPC FC was a tense affair with no one scoring until the 80th minute, but after a flurry of goals Hang Yuan prevailed 2-1 Tainan TSG (Taiwan Steel Group) have had to postpone their trip to Hong Kong to play in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup qualifiers. The AFC on Monday delayed the AFC Cup East Zone Group J qualifier matches in Hong Kong — which were to be held from Friday next week to May 20 — until June 23 to 29 due to international travel and quarantine challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. As defending champions of the Taiwan Football Premier League (TFPL), Tainan TSG are representing Taiwan in Group J against Mongolia’s Athletic 220, and Hong Kong’s Eastern Long Lions and Lee
FURIOUS FANS: The biggest game in English soccer was postponed amid chaotic scenes after about 200 protesters made their way onto the pitch and set off flares Manchester United’s English Premier League clash against Liverpool on Sunday was postponed after furious United fans stormed Old Trafford in protest at the club’s owners, while Gareth Bale scored a hat-trick as Tottenham Hotspur thrashed Sheffield United 4-0. Manchester City would have been crowned champions for the third time in four seasons if second-placed United had lost to Liverpool, but Pep Guardiola’s side saw their hopes of a title party put on hold after the biggest game in English soccer was postponed amid chaotic scenes. The Glazer family, already unpopular for their leveraged buyout of the club 16 years ago that saddled
RSS