Football: Italians welcome Uefa's revamp
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Your support makes all the difference.PLANS BY Uefa, European football's governing body, to revamp its tournaments were given a mixed reception by some of the Continent's leading clubs yesterday.
Leading Italian clubs gave a surprising and significant thumbs up to the plans for a revised Champions' League, as unveiled on Tuesday at a Uefa executive meeting in Lisbon.
But Real Madrid came out firmly in favour of the renegade Super League being planned by the Italian company, Media Partners, and Manchester United gave an indication they might also find non-Uefa proposals financially more attractive.
Responding to Uefa's plans to enlarge the competition to 32 teams, leading Italian Serie A clubs Internazionale, Milan, Lazio and Fiorentina all expressed their satisfaction, underlining the fact that the new regulations envisage four Italian entrants.
Giacinto Facchetti, the former Italian international who is now a consultant for Inter, said: "Uefa have shown that they have understood that the clubs want the cup competitions restructured and it seems that they have gone a long way towards realising [the restructuring] even before 2001."
Milan's acting president, Adriano Galliani, was equally enthusiastic. "We've taken a big step forward. Uefa has finally taken on board market considerations," he said.
Referring to the threat from the Milan-based company Media Partners to set up a rival breakaway European Super League, Galliani said: "Now we have to work out the finances. At the moment Uefa pays out only 50 per cent of its takings to the clubs while Media Partners had promised us 80 to 85 per cent."
The Real Madrid president, Lorenzo Sanz, completely rejected Uefa's plans, which would see the Champions' League expanded to 32 teams, and the Uefa Cup and Cup-Winners' Cup merged next season.
"I'm staying with the Media Partners project because it offers more money than that of Uefa," Sanz said. Uefa had said there would be more money for participating clubs, and although no figures were fixed, the prize fund is reported to be around pounds 320m, less than half the pounds 750m being offered by Media Partners.
Martin Edwards, Manchester United's chairman, implied that Uefa's proposals will not go far enough to satisfy his club. "We're one of three English clubs [along with Arsenal and Liverpool, who made no comment yesterday] talking to Media Partners and we'd welcome some more details from Uefa," he said, adding he was waiting for confirmation of prize-money available under Uefa's plans.
Villa Park will stage the final of this season's European Cup-Winners' Cup which could be the last if Uefa's proposal to merge it with the Uefa Cup comes into effect.
The European Cup final will take place at the Nou Camp , Barcelona, on 26 May, while the Uefa Cup final is scheduled for the Luzhniki stadium, Moscow, on 12 May.
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