He’s talking about a tectonic shift. He? It is Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the boss of PSG, who also manages the interests of European clubs at the head of the ECA (European Club Association) since April 2021. The Times has obtained a letter from the Qatari leader who is said to be close to striking a deal over TV and marketing rights for the already highly lucrative Champions League. According to the British media, this agreement would turn to 15 billion euros over three years, or five billion per year for the new format of the Queen’s world club-level competition.
In this letter, the Qatari leader discusses the impact for European clubs. “This represents a tectonic shift in the role that clubs now play – thanks to the ECA and in partnership with UEFA – in the decisions that shape European football,” Al-Khelaifi writes.
In the background is the war being waged by UEFA with the actors who dream of setting up a closed European Super League. With a windfall of 15 billion, the ECA and UEFA thus think to bring a definitive halt to this project that had agitated the football world last year.
Sportingly, UEFA had already prepared a response by proposing a new formula for the Champions League that would be applicable as early as 2024. UEFA had thus planned to increase the number of clubs (from 32 to 36), the number of matches (from 6 to 10 in the group stage) and the expansion of the knockout stage (from 8 to 16 teams).
From the same letter, the President of the ECA also mentions “other untapped sources of income”. This obviously makes us think of the cryptocurrency as the NFT, already used in the world of sports and football in particular.