Plans to alter the UEFA Champions League into a proposed 32-team league with 24 clubs having guaranteed entry have been halted by a group of football clubs from across Europe.

The European Club Association (ECA) and its chairman Andrea Agnelli, who is also president of Juventus FC, had backed the plans to in-effect restrict access to the competition. The continent's 'elite' (that is to say, richer) clubs would have a guaranteed instead spot in the competition each year, leaving 'smaller' clubs to fight for scraps in what would essentially be a promotion and relegation format. Plans were also in place to play Champions League matches on weekends, rather than weeknights, meaning domestic football would have had to moved to Tuesday and Wednesday nights in order to accommodate the revamped European competition.

In essence, the shift in format would have ensured even greater income from television rights and advertising for the likes of Juventus, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF.


Any approval of the plans would have dramatically altered the landscape of football, rendering the game even closer to what feels like an inevitable European Super League. The notion of such a competition is strongly opposed by those believe local people is the heartbeat of the game, in terms of attendances, micro economics and community spirit.

But Agnelli has now acknowledged that his and the ECA's will be shelved due to reservations from member clubs whose advice he sought. He said: “We have different views on formats and the stability principles. There is an overall acceptance that reform must happen in 2024/25.”

What those reforms in 2024 mean for the sport, and for Liverpool FC and others, remains unclear. Proposals have been mooted for clubs to qualify for the Champions League based on their historical success and European record over the previous decade, rather than solely on where they finished the previous domestic season.

Liverpool's success on pitch has been matched off it.

Although Liverpool would likely be included as one of the 24 entitled clubs guaranteed entry if the new reforms were to be imposed, the detrimental effect on domestic leagues and clubs left on the outside looking in would be enormous. Football has seen an uneven economic distribution from the likes of television money in recent seasons, and if the Champions League was to become a wealthy members' only club on top of that, the divide would increase exponentially and cause significant financial turmoil for less privileged teams.

Europe's domestic leagues need to remain genuinely competitive, and aspirations of of clubs who want to break the monopoly of those of top must be encouraged. If that competitiveness is lost, as has been seen in Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain's dominance, then the calls for a continent-wide division will only increase, and supporters may well decide that there are better ways to spend their money and time than investing in what is essentially a manufactured and contrived game.

The ramifications of a European Super League would seep into the wreckages of the domestic competitions left behind. Dwindling revenue combined with no real prospect of climbing the football ladder will isolate the clubs left behind, and lead to irreversible economic difficulty, and the plight experienced recently by English clubs Bury FC and Bolton Wanderers would become increasingly common.


The Champions League will no doubt change its format in some form in five years' time. Whatever alterations are imposed, it is down to Liverpool and others to consider the consequences of their plans, and to ensure the playing field is kept as even as possible beyond 2024.

The future of the game itself might just depend on it.