Virtually the same clubs finish in the top four in Europe’s biggest leagues every season, although sometimes in a different order. Since this doesn’t look likely to change, several big clubs are looking to change the system itself, by forming a new super-league outside of the jurisdiction of FIFA and UEFA. The Guardian reports that secret talks have taken place between European Union politicians in Brussels and several top executives at big clubs across Europe. The end result could be a break from soccer’s current governance and the desertion of big clubs from their domestic leagues — and it could happen within the next 5-10 years, according to EU officials.
At a meeting in Eindhoven, politicians such as Toine Manders, a Dutch MEP who has frequently expressed his wish that soccer adopt free-market principles, and Ivo Belet, a Belgian MEP, who drafted a white paper outlining the possibility of a super-league, met to finalize plans to deliver a proposal for sport to the European Commission.
The Guardian report doesn’t name any clubs, so it’s difficult to say how much support is behind the measure. For now, commitment to the Champions League and domestic competitions remains strong – mostly due to the television revenues and publicity they generate.