UEFA’s head tells Super League promoters there is time to rectify ‘mistake’

Sports Desk, Apr 20 (EFE).- The backlash provoked by the creation of the elite European Super League continued on Tuesday as heads of UEFA and FIFA called it an ill-advised step that still can be rectified.

President of UEFA Aleksander Ceferin urged the clubs involved in the breakaway Super League to backtrack out of respect for the fans and football history.

The dozen European clubs that launched the elite competition “should realise that if they are European giants today, it is partly thanks to UEFA,” he said during a UEFA congress held in the Swiss municipality of Montreux.

“I would like to address the owners of some English clubs. Gentlemen, you made a huge mistake,” he said.

“There is still time to change your mind, everyone makes mistakes, English fans deserve to have you correct your mistake, they deserve respect,” he added.

The Premier League’s Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal alongside La Liga’s Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona, and Serie A’s Inter, AC Milan and Juventus signed up to be the founding members of the new competition.

“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, unpredictable. This is what makes it such a beautiful game,” he added.

The tournament would comprise 20 teams, including the 15 founders, who would not face relegation, in addition to five competitors that qualify based on their performance in the previous season.

It drew criticism from fans, former and current players and even politicians like the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson .

On Monday, the UEFA boss said players taking part in the club competition would not be allowed to play international football in competitions like the UEFA Euros.