Stefano Campoccia, the Udinese vice president, spoke to Udinese Tonight about a range of topics. Here’s what he said:
“There’s not really anything to discuss at the Lega Serie A assembly at this early stage. We’re all in a state of shock from this sudden decision.
“We all thought that this danger had been averted after the latest UEFA measures to review the competition format from the 2024/25 season. It’s a low blow. It had been discussed for a long time and we knew they had this intention, but it was only clear at two points that they wanted to go through with this idea. The first was a few years ago and the second was during the five months of negotiations, between October and March, in which we tried to make the funds route possible, but it then ran aground.
“One of the points of no return in the negotiations was the introduction of a guarantee from the funds related to ‘what would happen if UEFA or a football association put forward changes to the format?’ In that case, in terms of the funds, any club that took part in setting up a sporting project that was separate from the current sporting body would have to compensate for the financial loss. That’s when that part of the working group started moving away.
“[Andrea] Agnelli’s behaviour has been congruent. He resigned from all his other roles and explained that this project doesn’t invalidate the three Italian clubs’ participation in domestic leagues and European competitions. That’s merely a formal position, however, as although the involvement of the clubs is a source of concern, the real problem is what are the repercussions on an organisational, sporting and financial level in terms of the balance of the competition.
“The idea of a group of six English clubs is threatening, but the project really runs the risk of not seeing the light of day. The fact that it came out at midnight shows that it was rushed out in a manner which wasn’t adequate given the repercussions. Juventus went up by 15% on the stock exchange today and I hope there will be a reversal in this regard that must be managed well. Politics at the top level have come to the foreground and sent out a very strong signal.
“The fact that this disease has been incubating for so long has been known ever since UEFA president Michel Platini allowed the UEFA Statutes to be modified in favour of the participation of the ECA on the UEFA Council. The attack began when the ECA started to make its voice heard from within UEFA.
“From an Udinese perspective, we’re worried because we know what to expect, based on a study from a few years ago which estimated a loss of revenue of between 30 and 50%. We need to look at that again because it’s not just about the loss of revenues, but the lease of revenues. We have an imperfect system. Compare the Premier League with Italy. In the Premier League, Manchester City’s television rights agreement is superior to ours by a ratio of two to one. Fair distribution allows for more competition, which is why the phenomenon of [Osvaldo] Bagnoli’s Verona is a distant memory while Leicester are a force able to make investment, see a return on that investment and have the ability to compete and win.
“Fans in Italy are angry because the gap between the big teams and the small teams is getting bigger. The chasm between the participating clubs and those that aren’t involved will be insurmountable.
“In terms of Udinese, we need to be cautious. The project is destabilising the situation. The big clubs need to adhere to the principles of competition and meritocracy.
“We all need to hold our nerve and acknowledge that this is an extremely serious situation. We need to be able to find a solution which avoids the departure of Inter, AC Milan and Juve from the league. They’re the giants of Serie A because they’ve always had smaller clubs that have contributed to building their legendary status. Football belongs to everyone, not 15 clubs. Now more than ever before, football is a social phenomenon for all – and we must defend and protect it.
“If their aim was the shake things up, they’ve done that and then some. We need to see what the situation really is. The hope is that it’s a strategy for restarting negotiations with UEFA over the Champions League format for 2024.
“The new Champions League format has just come out so I don’t know whether it’s possible for the various domestic competitions, UEFA competitions and the Super League to be compatible.
“As always, we want to lead the way – we’ve always seen innovation as a priority area. We completed the Re-Start test and that found its way to the FA at the right time. We grasp the gravity of the situation, but we need to start to acknowledge that the scenario is different. Our aim is to get to 25% capacity in stadiums. Football is a social phenomenon which can bring joy once again. We need to keep pushing in the hope that the last few matches can have fans at the stadiums.”