New challenge for UEFA: The Arabs want to play in the Champions League
Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 17.08.23. | 09:56
Saudi Pro League offered the main European football body to give them one place in their competition
The tectonic disturbance started by the Middle East is not going to stop any time soon. With bags full of money, Saudi Arabia clubs are ’camping’ in Europe and taking all the over-thirty players (and some younger ones) who like money above everything else. What they did in this transfer window will certainly have consequences in years to come, and the Saudis won’t stop soon. In fact, they seemed to have taken a move which could change things globally. As revealed by the Italian media Corriere dello Sport first and then confirmed by the reliable Calcio Finanza, the Arabs do not intend to stop only at gathering the best players on the planet but also want to play the best competitions in the world of football.
Saudi Arabia, plain and simple, wants to play in the Champions League! As the Italians claim, the idea has matured, and the Saudis are to ask UEFA for a special invitation to participate in the elite European Cup from the 2024/25 season. Then the new, reformed Champions League will be "launched" with 36 participating clubs, which will be arranged in a single table; there will be no groups and a total of eight rounds will be played. After that, the teams will be divided into those who go directly to the round of 16, those who will play between themselves in order to qualify for the next round, as well as those who will move to the Europa League.
Basically, the Saudis want their champion to be one of those 36 participants. The argument is, of course, the aces who went to the Middle East and who, in this way, could play again on the European continent, while the financial aspect that would be brought by the Arabs, should certainly not be neglected. If UEFA were to fulfil the Saudis' wish, it would be a precedent because until now, only clubs from Europe have played in the Cup and the Champions League at least in football geography. But a lot of things that were unthinkable until six months ago have happened, so nothing should be declared impossible in advance.
