Manchester United, Liverpool, More May Profit in Reported Champions League Plan

Established juggernauts of European football such as Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea are reportedly hatching a plan to guarantee their UEFA Champions League spots in years to come.

According to Martin Lipton of the Sun, the biggest names in the game are seeking to turn the competition into a “money-spinning cartel” that would ensure their places are secured in the tournament every season, regardless of their domestic performance.

“In turn, it would close the door on clubs who are trying to make the breakthrough,” adds Lipton, who cites surprise Premier League leaders Leicester City as a side who wouldn’t benefit from these potential changes in regulations.

The piece continues, citing a recent meeting that took place involving the European Club Association:

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Among the ideas which gained traction at the meeting in Nyon, Switzerland, was for places to be reserved, every year, for those clubs most attractive to broadcasters, whether they qualified or not.

The continued uncertainty in the Prem, likely to be intensified with the new TV deal from next season seeing clubs banking a minimum of £90 million and as much as £120 million, means clubs are increasingly fearful of making the top four.

Discussions saw clubs giving some support, in principle, for the automatic elite to be joined by other qualifiers from a competitive system.

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It’s suggested in the piece that recent winners, including the aforementioned English sides, could benefit. Liverpool won the tournament in 2005, while Manchester United (2008) and Chelsea (2012) have been crowned kings of the continent in the last decade.

Aside from English clubs, struggling Italian giants like seven-time winners AC Milan and three-time winners Inter Milan, who have been absent from the Champions League in recent seasons, could also benefit.

Here’s a reminder of the winners of the Champions League since the Reds' famous triumph in Istanbul:

Season	Winner	Runner-Up
2004-05	Liverpool	AC Milan
2005-06	Barcelona	Arsenal
2006-07	AC Milan	Liverpool
2007-08	Manchester United	Chelsea
2008-09	Barcelona	Manchester United
2009-10	Inter Milan	Bayern Munich
2010-11	Barcelona	Manchester United
2011-12	Chelsea	Bayern Munich
2012-13	Bayern Munich	Borussia Dortmund
2013-14	Real Madrid	Atletico Madrid
2014-15	Barcelona	Juventus

As things stand, the three teams mentioned could struggle to make the top four spots in the Premier League, which are occupied by Leicester, Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.

United and Liverpool—fifth and seventh in the standings respectively—still have a chance of breaking in, but the Blues, who are down in 13th, are a long way off the pace.

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It’s a move that is likely to divide opinion. The top clubs will be delighted if their spots are protected every season and would not have to worry about the financial ramifications of missing out on qualification. Keeping the biggest names in the tournament would be a smart commercial move on the part of the organisers, too.

However, it would dilute the competition. Europe’s elite club tournament is the most competitive in world  football, and that’s due to teams pushing on the standards year after year, not only in the Champions League proper, but in the pursuit of qualification itself.

After all, the fundamental point of the Champions League is for the finest teams on the continent to test themselves against one another.

Removing that pure competitive element would not only rob the tournament of its cut-throat aura, but filtering down the football pyramid, it would dampen the ambitions of smaller, up-and-coming outfits who already have the odds stacked against them.