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It’s supposed to be European football’s premier club competition, but is the Champions League in danger of replacing ball players with bean counters? Matt Barker investigates

Uefa Champions League

You could be forgiven for thinking that the Champions League is more about balance sheets than team sheets. Never mind the glory – Europe’s greatest club competition is big business. Playing in the initial group stage can add an estimated 10-20% to a club’s annual income and, if they progress further, the rewards clock in at about the €50m mark.

Long-term sponsor Mastercard recently commissioned a report that calculated this season’s winner stands to make €100m, on top of prize money of €40m and gate receipts tallied up during their winning run to the final, in Athens, on 23 May. Financial analysts at Deloitte & Touche believe television rights to Champions League games cover approximately one fifth of the larger clubs’ wage bills, especially in Italy and Spain.

Is there much room for a romantic among all this high-stakes number crunching? Michel Platini’s election as UEFA president, in January this year, suggests that there still might be. The Frenchman, who has revealed a knack for urbane politicking, retains a common touch and a link to a purer, more glamorous age.

Having begun his playing career with provincial sides Nancy and Saint Etienne, the 51-year-old has always had a keener appreciation of lower-level football than some of his contemporaries within UEFA and the game’s upper echelons. During his election campaign, he pledged to widen the geographical spread of the Champions League’s later knock-out phase, incurring the wrath of the richer, larger clubs, who were miffed at the prospect of a derailed gravy train.

Theo Zwanziger, head of the German FA, was particularly cutting on learning of the Frenchman’s appointment. “Now the champion of social romanticism is going to have to meet reality,” he opined. Disgruntled voices from the English Premier League, upset at plans to cut its Champions League places from four to three, were soon chipping in, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger stating: “What the people want to see is the elite.”

Wenger’s claim is a widely held one in football’s more exclusive circles – a belief that an impartial audience would much rather see the likes of Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Manchester United and Bayern Munich than a smaller side made up of relative unknowns.

The G14 group – originally made up of former European Cup winners, but now featuring 18 of the “most significant contributors to the quality and success of European club football” – was founded on this principle in September 2000. Yet the Champions League remains a cup competition, one that regularly sees unfancied teams adopted by neutrals, especially if they make it through to the group stages. Platini is clearly worried that the competition’s magic could be lost as television audiences tire of watching Barcelona play Chelsea every year. “It is a game before a product, a sport before a market, a show before a business,” the Frenchman warned.

Danish side Brondby IF welcome Platini’s proposed changes, as director of sports Andres Bjerregaard explains: “Today, small football nations have great difficulty in qualifying for the Champions League. Being part of the competition on a regular basis will advance the sport in those countries.”

Platini – whose other plans include the introduction of a salary cap – now has two years of face-offs and bickering to contend with. Any changes can only be enforced when the present television and sponsorship deals lapse in 2009, and the G14 clubs are bound to be sharpening their sabres for some choice rattling.

The fact is, the big clubs have had it their way once before and it was an unmitigated disaster. The introduction of a second group stage was widely reviled for throwing up too many meaningless games. The concept was finally dropped by UEFA in 2003, to the consternation of G14, who threatened to go it alone, claiming the new format would result in loss of revenue.

Platini has staked his presidency on his expansion policy. As a midfielder at the heart of the French national team and an all-conquering Juventus side, he was lauded for his uncanny ability to read a game two or three passes ahead of everyone else. It’s a skill that could see the three-times European Player of the Year neatly sidestep his toughest opponents yet.

Champions league

THE HISTORY

Now the proud, lucrative flagship of European club football, the Champions League was an extension of – and is still regarded as a continuation of– the original European Cup, a straight knock-out competition. Its origin, however, was less than auspicious. A trial run saw the 1992 final contested between Barcelona and Sampdoria, both clubs having topped two mini-leagues of four teams that replaced the traditional quarter-finals.

The following season, the first time the competition was fully branded as the Champions League, Marseille’s defeat of Milan in the inaugural final was overturned after a bribery scandal. In 1991, the last European Cup proper (Red Star Belgrade seeing off Marseille on penalties in the final), the last 16 included five clubs that have never featured in the competition’s new format, denied a place by the numerous ‘champions’ in the English, Spanish and Italian leagues.

THE FINAL

The 72,000-seater Olympic Stadium in Athens (which will host the 2007 Champions League Final) was given a major facelift for the 2004 Olympics. UEFA bigwigs were seen at this year’s Superbowl final in the US, prompting concern that the final in the Greek capital could be subjected to US-style pre-match razzamatazz. Not so, says UEFA, but European football’s governing body has admitted that it’s looking into ways of “building anticipation” before kick-off, with numerous wrinkled rockers rumoured to be performing. The city of Athens itself is rich with pre- and post-match treats, including traditional tavernas

Eat and drink

Dining hotspots in the
Greek capital

EXPENSIVE

48
Armatolon and Klefton 48, tel. +30 21 0641 1082 Innovative modern Greek and seafood dishes next door to an art gallery.

Edodi
Veikou 80, tel. +30 21 0921 3013 Celebrated contemporary dining by candlelight.

MID-RANGE

Giantes
Valtetsiou 44, tel. +30 21 0330 1369 Organic treats, taverna-style. Try to grab a table in the flowered courtyard.

Vlassis
Paster 8, tel. +30 21 0646 3060 Traditional Greek cooking with a tapas-style informality.

BUDGET

Neon
Omonia Square, tel. +30 21 0522 9939 Excellent Athenian fast food, with branches dotted around the city.

La Pasteria
Patisson 58, tel. +30 21 0825 0315 Popular pasta pit-stop for quick lunch options.

La Ligue du profit

On vous pardonnera si vous pensez que la Ligue des Champions est plus une affaire de finances qu’une affaire d’équipes. Audelà de la gloire, la plus prestigieuse des compétitions des clubs d’Europe est d’abord un fameux enjeu commercial. Jouer dans la phase de groupes initiale, par exemple, peut apporter une plus-value de 10 à 20% aux rentrées annuelles d’un club: arriver au niveau supérieur pèse 50 millions d’euros dans la balance.

Les analystes financiers Deloitte & Toucheles estiment que les droits de retransmission télévisuels des matches de la Ligue des Champions couvrent environ un cinquième de la facture salariale des plus grands clubs, particulièrement en Italie et en Espagne.

Reste-t-il encore un peu de place pour le romantisme du sport dans une telle industrie?

L’élection de Michel Platini à la présidence de l’UEFA en février de cette année peut le laisser penser. Il a plaidé en faveur d’un prochain réajustement du système de compétition de la Ligue des Champions en voulant ouvrir le cercle très fermé des nations admises par la Ligue, mais les grands clubs sont dubitatifs. Ils pensent qu’un public impartial préférera toujours voir jouer de grands clubs reconnus, comme le Real de Madrid, l’Inter de Milan, Manchester United ou la Bayern de Munich plutôt que de se passionner pour des clubs relativement inconnus.

D’autres, comme du côté danois, Brondby IF, pensent au contraire, comme l’explique le directeur sportif Andes Bjerregaard “qu’accéder à la compétition en raison de ses mérites fera avancer le sport dans ces autres pays, fera augmenter le niveau général de la compétition et diversifiera le jeu”.

Aucun changement ne pourra entrer en vigueur avant le terme du contrat conclu jusqu’en 2009 avec les télévisions et les sponsors. Les clubs du G14, qui pas plus tard que l’année dernière niaient toute velléité de former une ligue à part, sont déterminés à s’opposer à toute renégociation.

De hebzuchtliga

Het is je vergeven als je denkt dat bij de Champions League geld belangrijker is dan teamspirit. Vergeet de glorie. De grootste clubcompetitie van Europa is gewoon big business. Deelname aan de eerste groepsronde levert een club jaarlijks 10 tot 20% meer inkomsten op. Wie verder raakt, kan algauw rekenen op zo’n 50 miljoen euro.

Volgens financieel analist Deloitte & Touche betalen de televisierechten op de Champions League-wedstrijden zowat een vijfde van alle loonbriefjes bij de grotere clubs, vooral in Italië en Spanje.

Is er nog ruimte voor een romanticus tussen al die cijferaars?

De verkiezing van Michel Platini als UEFA-voorzitter in februari dit jaar lijkt aan te geven van wel. Platini pleitte ervoor de geografische spreiding van de voorrondes van de Champions League te vergroten, maar de grote clubs zien dat niet meteen zitten. Zij denken dat een onpartijdig publiek liever kijkt naar Real Madrid, Inter, Manchester United en Bayern Munchen dan naar kleinere, relatief onbekende ploegen.

Andere clubs, zoals het Deense Brondby IF, zijn het daar niet mee eens.

Sportdirecteur Andes Bjerregaard legt uit: “Regelmatig deelnemen aan de competitie zal de sport ook in andere landen promoten, het niveau verhogen en het spel diversifiëren.”

Veranderen kan pas wanneer de huidige tv- en sponsorcontracten aflopen in 2009. De G14-clubs, die vorig jaar nog plannen voor een aparte competitie moesten ontkennen, zullen elke poging tot hervorming aanvechten.