Updated at 11am
THE PREMIER LEAGUE’s so-called ‘big five’ did meet at a London hotel yesterday, but it was not to discuss the possibility of a breakaway European Super League according to reports this afternoon.
The Sun newspaper photographed Ivan Gazidis (Arsenal), Ferran Soriano (Manchester City), Ed Woodward (Manchester United) Ian Ayre (Liverpool) and Bruce Buck (Chelsea) leaving the Dorchester hotel and claimed the quintet were there consider a break away league.
Nick Sutton / Twitter
Nick Sutton / Twitter / Twitter
While the five did meet with representatives of Stephen Ross, the billionaire owner of the Miami Dolphins, it was not, as the paper said to “cut out the risks of them missing out on Champions League millions every season if they fail to qualify.”
Instead, according to the Press Association “the talks were primarily about pre-season tournament the International Champions Cup” and not a discussion about a European Super League.
Arsenal also denied the meeting was to discuss a breakaway league.
“We are strongly opposed to any breakaway,” they said.
Not Arsenal, nor any clubs at the meeting, are seeking changes to the Premier League and European landscape and no conversations surrounding displacing the Premier League or starting a European Super League took place.
“Discussions were primarily around the ICC and formats of European competitions that would compliment the existing Premier League.”
Originally published at 9am.
Of course the sun was present at the meetings or are they tapping phones again?
Turns out they were planning the international cup which is a pre season friendly tournament.. The Sun again making up bull..
Nothing to see here….This happens every time the Champions League TV rights are up for negotiations…the big clubs threaten to leave in order to get a better deal
This is an insult to Leicester, Spurs etc who are doing it the hard way..don’t want to work for it
Yes this is very true, but unfortunately football clubs are businesses not “Clubs”. So if your business is under performing or has a dramatic slump in revenue that’s not forecasted in cash-flow, then you’re going to seek new revenue channels to compensate.
These chief execs are only thinking of the safest least complicated way to maximum profits…. and nothing else.
No it isn’t, it’s an insult to the name of journalism, don’t ever believe anything you ever read in the S*n newspaper.
Liverpool should wait until they manage a league title or regular top 4 finishes before they start thinking of having to break away from the Premier League
Only once since 09/10 have Liverpool finished ahead of Spurs. I wouldn’t call them one of the ‘Big 5′ anymore.
Your right about there position recently, but you do not understand what big club means.
There’s 5 Big trophies that say your wrong!!
Just what football doesn’t need. More money making over paid pampered babies lazier and lazier. Footballers used to pride themselves on being tough. Now it’s like auditions for the next Tom Daley now with all the diving. Fair play to Leicester spurs West Ham etc for putting a bit of fun back into soccer. That super league would be the biggest bore fest in history.
what are you praising Leicester for any time I’ve seen them the players go over if someone in the crowd looks funny at them the main reason Vardy is doing well is defenders can’t touch him as he is getting so many soft decisions from referees
Well if ian ayre is doing the negotiations for liverpool you can pretty much rule them out.
So qualification is about the best balance sheet and not best league position. This needs to be boycotted
Makes perfect sense to those in charge. With more and more foreign owners of English clubs the business model of American football makes much more sense to them than the traditional European division of soccer in to national leagues. A super league made up of 2 divisions (Conferences) of 12 or 16 teams each, with no relegation to worry about, qualifying 2/4 teams each for conference semi finals and finals and ultimately a Superfinal (Superbowl) is the ideal business model for the top teams. Attendances at matches are virtually guaranteed, TV rights would be huge, the world markets secured and the risk of coming a cropper on a wet Wednesday in Stoke would be eliminated. The national leagues would become like the minor leagues in football/baseball and become feeders for the big clubs. The loss of a few disgruntled supporters for a short while would be offset by the revenue and prestige of playing only the best clubs.
There would be no need to worry about annual qualification to the Champions League as effectively it would exist as the new league and the Champions League as we know it would become defunct. No more qualification.
Sky’s £11m per game bid for Premier League Tv Rights is looking worse and worse. Squeeky bum time for sky.
Doubt sky would still have to pay that, surely if the five biggest draws left the league the contract would be void
Why would the big clubs leave English football when they make so much money from both. The champions league is no longer a big deal financially to English clubs, it’s just about prestige now.
Bartomeu’s comment about the wild card last week was utterly disgusting. Like how dare clubs like Leicester and Spurs qualify for the Champions League at Chelsea’s expense.
If these big wigs want a Super League, let them off. I’d laugh at a half empty Old Trafford if 4th from the bottom United were at home from 5th from the bottom Arsenal with 2 games to go.
What do you expect from a man who runs a club with QATAR AIRWAYS on the jersey?
Sky Sports ruined English Football along with the Premier League.
Why because Liverpool’s domination came to an end?
Soccer clubs became a business, not a soccer club.
But that was always going to happy with or without sky..
I never said nothing about sky….. Someone was going to do it, Murdoch saw the best way to get people onto Satellite…. Coverage from ITV and BBC used to be terrible, lucky if you got 5 live games a year….
Itv used to show a live game every Sunday afternoon on The Match
They had that for a year or two before sky blew them out of the water…. Not sure it was every week either….
Disgusting arrogance. I would boycottt this shite.
The good thing about not supporting anyone in English football means this is completely irrelevant to me. They don’t take any money off me. I stream matches on line, don’t buy jersies and would only attend a game if I happened to be there at the same time.
What’s Ian Ayre doing there?
Liverpool should be applying to join the League of Ireland, not a European super league
What were Liverpool doing there? Don’t think they got the memo that it was the big 5 they were looking for not the big 10
A potential franchise in Dublin? 50,000 every week in the Aviva. Create more money that goes back into the LOI to get better players to bring through. Ideally bring in an irish academy playing against top underage sides more regularly. Do we or should we care if Leicester or Spurs don’t get invited?
Didn’t they try this 20 years ago with Dublin Dons
Long before English teams do leave the PL, there will be a Super league of “super” clubs that suffer financially due to playing a smaller league .. .Think Ajax, Feyenoord, Celtic, Rangers, Olympiacos, The big 3 in Istanbul, the big 3 in Portugal.
Add to this a “franchise” in Dublin and you have a very strong league.
Read on the guardian it was to do with some pre season competition the American fellas trying to organise in the states I’d take their word over the s*n any day of the week
They will be left with a huge amount of egg on their faces if Leicester or Tottenham win the league this season.
Haha Big 5 and half them aint even in the top 5. As a spurs fan i think this is hilarious.
Why should they get a wildcard? Also who’s qualify a from this super league into the champions league? Top 8!!