Spanish sports minister says agreement needed for any soccer league changes

French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson have condemned the plan and supported UEFA. UEFA has threatened to ban the clubs involved from domestic and international competition and said it will resist the move.


Reuters | Updated: 19-04-2021 17:55 IST | Created: 19-04-2021 17:55 IST
Spanish sports minister says agreement needed for any soccer league changes

Spanish sports minister Jose Manuel Rodriguez Uribes said on Monday that changes to soccer leagues should be made by agreement, after 12 leading European clubs announced the formation of a breakaway Super League.

Any changes must benefit the Spanish league, the Spanish national squad and Spanish clubs including the small ones, Rodriguez Uribes told reporters. "We don't want it (the new project) to affect (Spanish soccer), and if it does, we want it to affect (it) in a good way," the minister said.

Rodriguez Uribes said that before he took a position on the new project he would talk to those who proposed it and to European soccer association UEFA, which opposes the breakaway league. The tone of his comments contrasted with the heavy criticism of the plan voiced by soccer authorities, fan organisations and politicians across Europe.

The 12 clubs involved, including Spain's Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Real Madrid, have told UEFA they will take legal steps to protect their interests as they set up the new league. French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson have condemned the plan and supported UEFA.

UEFA has threatened to ban the clubs involved from domestic and international competition and said it will resist the move.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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