UEFA president Aleksander Cerefin has revealed that he wishes to implement a salary cap into European football “as soon as possible”.
The Slovenian says he is concerned about a small number of clubs becoming exclusively successful, winning all of the trophies year after year with no competition. UEFA are set to introduce new regulations from 2024 whereby a club cannot spend more than 70 per cent of their revenue on transfers and salaries.
Manchester United and Manchester City are considered to have two of the biggest wage bills in Europe with the wealth of the Premier League shadowing all other competitions across the continent.
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Cerefin is worried that UEFA’s impending finance regulations on their own may not be enough to stop the dominance of the select few at Europe’s top table, and that more will have to be done in order to prevent a loss of competition.
He says it’s a concern shared by all clubs and claims “everyone agrees” that a salary cap would be a good move, as long as it is applied across all European leagues. Speaking to US outlet Men In Blazers, Cerefin said: “In the future we have to seriously think about a salary cap.
“If the budgets go sky-high then our competitive balance is a problem. It’s not about the owners, it’s about the value of the competition, because if five clubs will always win then it doesn’t make sense any more.
“I already spoke with some people from the European Commission, we are trying to push that. But it has to be a collective agreement – every league and UEFA. Because if we do it and the other leagues don’t, then it doesn’t make sense.”
Football saw a huge response to the attempted Super League breakaway in 2021 which threatened to undermine the European football pyramid by guaranteeing participation for 12 elite clubs.
A22 Sports Management are trying to champion a revised version of the proposal, which is being shunned by many onlookers and analysts. And while the consensus seems to be against a Super League, Cerefin says all clubs are on board for a salary cap.
The 59-year-old added: “Surprisingly, everyone agrees – big clubs, small clubs, state-owned clubs, billionaire-owned clubs, everybody agrees. I hope it can be made as soon as possible. We have just started to discuss about it, I think that’s the solution.
“For now we have the new rule after 2024 that you can spend up to 70 per cent of your revenues for salaries and transfers, but that’s not enough because if your revenues are five billion, 70 per cent is quite a lot.
“So this is the future here, and I’m not afraid of the club owners being too powerful or anything. UEFA is leading the European competition and we have great relations with the European Club Association now.”
Both United and City are in the midst of financial situations. The Reds are currently undergoing a takeover process while the Blues have been handed more than 100 charges of alleged financial irregularities by the Premier League.
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