The vice chair of the European Club Association believes Saudi Arabia’s investment has made people realise football is too money-orientated
Jordan Henderson and Roberto Firmino both left Liverpool in the summer to take up lucrative contracts in the Saudi Pro League.Jordan Henderson and Roberto Firmino both left Liverpool in the summer to take up lucrative contracts in the Saudi Pro League.and its extensive transfer spending in Europe this summer are “making a lot of people realise that football is becoming too much about money”, according to a senior figure in the European Club Association.
“Perhaps in a way what has happened with Saudi investment into football is actually positive,” Mioduski said. “It’s making a lot of people realise that football is becoming too much about money. “Those of us in smaller clubs, smaller leagues, we’ve been saying this for a while. This is a real issue in European football that there is such a concentration of money in a few leagues, particularly the Premier League, but not only there. In the past we could say easily that football was not about money. Today we can say that money is the primary factor, the primary component in success.
New Uefa rules will set a cap on spending for those in European competition relative to income, but Mioduski believes only substantial reform driven by changes in EU law can start to truly level the playing field. Talks around a European sports model between the EU and football’s regulators have begun, something which could provide a future platform for change.
“I would think that there are some concerns, especially among some of the bigger clubs about competition from clubs owned by sovereign funds,” Mioduski said. “Perhaps the Saudi situation and the fact that the big clubs in the big leagues feel threatened will make everyone realise that football must go in a new direction.
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