Super League - Aleksander Ceferin berates 'arrogant' and 'ignorant' club owners - 'Huge mistake'
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Updated 20/04/2021 at 13:28 GMT
The club owners behind the highly controversial European Super League project were left in no doubt what UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin thought about their power grab on Tuesday as he gave a furious speech to UEFA's congress in Montreux, Switzerland. Ceferin did not hold back in a stinging rebuke of the owners involved.
'Come to your senses' - Ceferin berates 'arrogant' and 'ignorant' Super League club owners
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin delivered an explosive and highly-charged speech on Tuesday, lambasting the club owners behind the European Super League.
Ceferin addressed the formation of a breakaway Super League by 12 top clubs from England, Spain and Italy - and he did not hold back in castigating the owners involved.
"There has been a shift in recent years," Ceferin began. "A semantic and ideological shift. A shift that too often ignores what happens on the pitch, that ignores sporting merit. A shift that has to be stopped immediately.
"Champions League elimination for some is no longer a sporting failure, it is an industrial risk that some are no longer willing to take.
The ultimate aim, for some, is no longer to decorate the club’s trophy cabinet with silverware, but to fill the bank account with cash. Selfishness is replacing solidarity.
"Football does not belong to anyone. Or rather, it belongs to everyone, because football is part of our heritage. Diversity is what makes European society unique. UEFA competitions need the Atalantas, Celtics, Rangers, Dynamo Zagrebs and Galatasarays of this world.
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"The big clubs today were not necessarily big clubs in the past, and there is no guarantee that they will be big clubs in the future. Football is dynamic, football is unpredictable. This is what makes it a beautiful game.
"To the English clubs, mainly, come to your senses, not out of love for football, because I imagine some of you don't have much of that. But out of respect for those who bleed themselves dry so that they can go to the stadium to support their team and want the dream to be kept alive. For those [people] you change your mind, do it out of respect for the English people, for the home of football.
Gentlemen, you made a huge mistake. Some will say it is greed, others disdain, arrogance, flippancy or complete ignorance of England's football culture.
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"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.
"Where were Manchester United in the decade before Sir Alex arrived on the scene? And where were Juventus 15 years ago? As much as I know, they were in Serie B.
"In times of crisis, human beings can choose between two options: self-interest or solidarity. You have chosen solidarity together. A choice that will enable us to emerge stronger from this crisis, and make football stronger than ever."
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