UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin opposed the idea of organizing domestic competitions abroad in his speech at the 50th congress of the European organization on Thursday. He said European leagues should not risk undermining the loyalty of their supporters at home for short-term goals.
Speaking a day after UEFA reached a settlement with Real Madrid that ended their legal feud over the ill-fated European Super League, Ceferin also emphasized the need for European football to maintain a single, open pyramid.
A La Liga match between Villarreal and Barcelona was due to take place in the United States, and a Serie A match between AC Milan and Como was due to take place in Australia before league authorities canceled the plans last year.
Ceferin advised clubs not to trade ‘roots for reach’.
«Domestic competitions derive their strength from their territory, their traditions and their match fans. Exporting domestic matches abroad may serve short-term interests, but it weakens connections and erodes loyalty,» said the Slovenian lawyer and football executive.
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“How do you build identity when you take the game out of its home… how do you maintain local passion when you trade it in?”
Ceferin, who has been UEFA president since 2016, said European football «will never be closed», in an apparent reference to the «proposed European Super League», which had originally proposed a model that guaranteed the participation of some of the popular clubs.
«It’s for everyone. And what belongs to everyone is stronger than any force… we chose unity over fragmentation. We chose stewardship over improvisation,» he said.
«This season alone, more than 400 million euros ($475 million) will be redistributed to clubs outside the Champions League competition stage. And of that, 308 million will go to clubs that do not participate in European competitions at all. Would this exist in a system driven solely by profit? I am sure the answer is clear.»
FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who also spoke at the UEFA congress, congratulated the European football body and Real on resolving their legal dispute.
“Because football wins when we unite,” Infantino said hgtgdfgdtr18.
Published on February 12, 2026
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