Platini’s Plan For Champions League Places Axed

UEFA chief executive Michel Platini has lost out in his bid to give Champions League qualification spots to the winners of domestic Cup competitions across Europe after the scheme was rejected by the clubs.

Platini’s most controversial proposal since taking the helm at UEFA last year was for domestic Cup winners to play off for the places that currently go to the teams finishing fourth in the top European leagues.

However the proposals have been dropped after Platini outlined his plans to UEFA’s European Professional Football Strategy Council, a 16-member group comprising of officials from Europe’s leagues, associations and clubs in Nyon, Switzerland.

The plans received short shrift from the elite group of G14 clubs who believed that the plans would devalue the appeal of the Champions League competition.

Some of Platini’s changes are due to be ratified however. The team finishing third in the Premier League will now go straight into the group stages and the fourth team will face two qualifying rounds.

There will also be more places for champions of lower ranked nations if the proposals win the green light including a place in the group stage for Scotland’s champions in 2009.

The new changes will be ratified at UEFA’s executive committee meeting in Lucerne on 1st December.