Leave the Champions League alone, or fix it properly

Change is once again on the way for Europe’s premier club competition. What once begun in 1955 with only the champions of each league is now looking to extend to 36 teams across the continent.

The current broadcasting deal lasts until 2024 which is when we could see the changes set in. The European Club Association, which has members from every European league, is looking to work with UEFA and move towards a ‘Swiss Model’.

This would see the current 32 team group stage replaced by a 36 team league format. Each team would play ten matches, split home and away, with the top eight going straight to the knockout stages while the next 16 ranked sites will battle it out in a play-off for the other eight spots.

All of this in isolation doesn’t sound that bad. It’s certainly innovative. There is an argument that the current group stage format has passed it’s sell by date with too many repeat matches and too many groups almost done and dusted by matchday four.

But it is not just the format that is contributing to this and it’s one of the reasons why these new changes should be opposed. The bigger clubs already have a vast wealth advantage over most of their counterparts. These moves will end up widening that gap even further.

Among the proposals is an idea to offer up extra places to clubs who historically performed well in Europe, based on the co-efficient. In other words, a big club could have a bad season but still get the lucrative reward of Champions League qualification. For example, you could have Everton finishing 5th and Tottenham in 6th. But because of recent success in the competition, Spurs would get a Champions League place and therefore the money that comes with it.

There is a thought that this part of the proposal may be deliberately provocative and making the issue of expanding the competition and number of matches more appealing. It makes business sense to do so but leaves a sour taste.

At the heart of it all, the European giants want more games against each other. The prospect of a European Super League doesn’t seem to be on the horizon anytime soon. The Premier League is still benefitting from enormous broadcast deals while fan power in Germany is strong enough to keep Bayern Munich out of the picture, for now at least.

It is not the same story everywhere though. Real Madrid and Barcelona are facing some serious financial difficulties while Paris Saint Germain start off every season as heavy favourites to coast to the title in France. Andrea Agnelli, Juventus chairman, has made no secret of his desire for a Super League.

It comes across as little more than greed from these bigger clubs, with little regard for all the clubs they would leave behind or the idea that their fans would have to travel across Europe to attend games every second week. It would move football further away from the working class support it is associated with.

The Champions League as it is right now is far from perfect. The increase in prize money has led to some of the domestic leagues being dominated by the same teams year in, year out. They then qualify for the Champions League, bank the money, and the cycle continues, making it very difficult for challengers to compete.

BATE Borisov had won 13 titles in a row up until 2018 in Belarus, Dinamo Zagreb have won 14 of the last 15 titles in Croatia and Celtic are currently on nine titles in a row in Scotland, although this is likely to end this year at the hands of Rangers.

It’s hard to come up with a perfect solution but football needs to find a way to distribute it’s wealth more fairly. The game is on it’s knees at non-league level in England while the major clubs are fighting to add more millions to the coffers. Football is an ecosystem and the elite need to remember this before it’s too late.

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