UEFA set for third European club competition from 2021-22 season

UEFA are set to roll out a third European club competition from 2021-22, pending the final approval from the executive committee.

The new competition will join the Champions League and Europa League to expand the overall number of clubs involved in European football to 96.

Juventus chief and European Club Association chairman Andrea Agnelli outlined more details on the proposal.

“These new regulations will be even more effective than the ones we had in place which delivered astonishing results which have just been announced by UEFA,” said Agnelli.

“Pending approval of the UEFA ExCo, the ‘green light’ has been given to introduce a third competition, bringing the overall number of clubs to 96, as of the 2021-22 season.

“A detailed assessment of the existing International Match Calendar is required prior to presenting a new model post-2024. The current model needs modernising.”

The Champions League is unlikely to be altered, though the Europa League will be modified to spread the quality out. That means the current number of teams in the secondary European competition is likely to fall from the current 48 teams to 32.

Sides from smaller nations will allegedly instead compete in the new tournament, which is reportedly set to be broadcast largely online.

UEFA have run a two-tournament club season since the Intertoto Cup was disbanded in 2008.

They previously also had the Cup-Winners’ Cup, which was scrapped 1999 after Italy’s Lazio beat Real Mallorca of Spain in its last ever final at Villa Park in Birmingham.

The idea is likely to help de-clutter the congested pre-qualifying process and aid smaller nations, such as Scotland, promote their football more and provide more opportunities for their lesser teams to gain experience.

Scottish champions Celtic’s chief executive Peter Lawwell previously called for the Europa League to be expanded, his logic being that it having more teams would help to address the competitive balance in domestic leagues.

He said: “We should be looking at supporting our bigger clubs, supporting our clubs in Europe and exporting Scottish football so whatever we do in Europe, or whatever any club participating do, it brings back coefficient points and significant revenue for the league.

“So that would be a huge mistake and I don’t think that would happen. I think people are smart enough to realise the consequences of dumbing down the big clubs and therefore it won’t.

“My view on competitive balance in Europe and in Scotland is about access and inclusion. So negative steps like squad caps, salary caps – these to me are negative and actually harm the development of football. It should be all about inclusion.

“For example, if we can expand the Europa League from 2021 to 2024 maybe from 48 to 64 teams and get the access right, that might mean teams like Aberdeen, Hearts and Hibs have a better chance of entering the group stages, therefore gaining transforming finance and therefore improving their competitiveness back here in Scotland.

“So rather than having negative influences we should be looking at far more positive and looking at ways of inclusion and access for clubs from medium to small-sized nations.

“That, for me, would be the transformer for Scottish football.”