UEFA could agree to changes to the Champions League format next week, according to one of its executive committee members.
Lars-Christer Olsson, who represents European national leagues on UEFA’s rules committee, said there could be a meeting on Wednesday if there is a proposal that can be approved.
Several changes in the way of competing in the maximum club championship in Europe have been underway for some time, however, there are clubs that may not agree to this modification.
There are also two other points that are under discussion and that next week may be defined for future editions of the tournament, one of the most exciting and passionate in the world after the World Cup.
UEFA and the leaders of the main European clubs agree to incorporate four teams and 36 clubs to play a free-for-all competition according to the “Swiss model” used in chess tournaments.
“In the current financial climate, it’s going to be difficult for people to afford more and more games.We’ll potentially lose whole generations of supporters.” UEFA’s xecutive director Ronan Evain said.
There are differences around how to allocate additional seats, the number of games each team will play and the distribution of money.
The European Clubs Association wants two spots to be reserved for teams that did not qualify but rank high in UEFA’s rankings for results in previous seasons. There are those who say that this is just a way to incorporate large teams that did not qualify.
The clubs want to face ten different rivals in a format that would create an additional 100 games. The European Leagues, made up of 30 nations, propose that three places be reserved for national champions of countries in the middle of their classification and that each team play eight games.