04-19-2021, 09:40 AM
What's so interesting about this to me is that fan reaction has been almost uniformly negative. Fans feel betrayed that these teams would light soccer as we know it on fire just to tilt overall soccer revenue more in their favor. Nobody likes this, not even fans of the teams involved.
Club soccer is already top-heavy in these leagues. They already make the most money, dominate year in and year out, and are worldwide brands. And it's not enough for them.
It's just such a betrayal, and for what? For clubs that are already filthy rich to get incrementally richer, while consigning hundreds of other clubs to a bleaker financial future.
It's almost hard to imagine it actually happening. Certainly the costs could be too much to bear, if UEFA and FIFA hold firm and follow through on their threat to keep the teams from participating in domestic leagues and the players from playing internationally. But this is a power play from teams who want a bigger share of the pie. Seems like the best case scenario right now is that UEFA sweetens the pot for teams who advance to the knockout stages in the Champions League, and these teams get a bigger share of the pie, but within the current system.
Kudos to the German clubs for not signing on, though as they're primarily community-owned, they'd need membership approval. If fan reaction of the involved clubs is any indication, that's something no club would ever get.
Club soccer is already top-heavy in these leagues. They already make the most money, dominate year in and year out, and are worldwide brands. And it's not enough for them.
It's just such a betrayal, and for what? For clubs that are already filthy rich to get incrementally richer, while consigning hundreds of other clubs to a bleaker financial future.
It's almost hard to imagine it actually happening. Certainly the costs could be too much to bear, if UEFA and FIFA hold firm and follow through on their threat to keep the teams from participating in domestic leagues and the players from playing internationally. But this is a power play from teams who want a bigger share of the pie. Seems like the best case scenario right now is that UEFA sweetens the pot for teams who advance to the knockout stages in the Champions League, and these teams get a bigger share of the pie, but within the current system.
Kudos to the German clubs for not signing on, though as they're primarily community-owned, they'd need membership approval. If fan reaction of the involved clubs is any indication, that's something no club would ever get.