Champions League in the USA! UEFA open to possibility as Aleksander Ceferin insists ‘b*stards in Switzerland’ aren’t all about money

• Premier club competition in Europe
• Attracts interest from across the globe
• Financial rewards on offer

WHAT HAPPENED? Europe’s premier club competition always pull in a global audience, with supporters in every corner of the planet eager to catch a glimpse of their heroes in continental action. With that interest taken into account, and with considerable financial rewards on offer, Ceferin concedes that the United States may be chosen to play host to fixtures in the future. He insists that such a move would not be a money-making scheme, despite what some may suggest, with UEFA eager to help grow the world game as much as possible.

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WHAT THEY SAID: Ceferin has told the Men in Blazers podcast: “It is possible (Champions League could be in the US). We started to discuss about that, but then one year it is the World Cup, 2024 is Euro, this year is Istanbul, '24 in London, '25 in Munich. And after that let's see. It's possible, it's possible. Football is extremely popular in United States these days. Americans are willing to pay this amount (gestures high with hand) for the best and nothing for the less. So they will follow European football as basketball lovers in Europe follow NBA.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The head of European football went on to say: “It's a very important, promising market for the future. The thing is that we are selling rights very well. Sponsorship is so-so for now from the U.S., but here (in US) commercialization is completely different than in Europe. They [Americans] are much more talented for that than us [Europeans]. Fans will still think in a way, these b*stards in Switzerland, it's all about money, and I repeat thousand times, we redistribute 97% of the money. Of course our revenues are huge. I would love them to be much, much bigger than now. What shocked me actually is that our Euro (2020) finals, Europe national team finals, was watched by more people in United States than NBA Finals. What shocked me is that 30 matches of the Euros, every match viewership was a Super Bowl viewership. So I think we are doing well.”

IN THREE PHOTOS:

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WHAT NEXT? The United States is already set to take on co-hosting duties at the 2026 World Cup – alongside neighbours Canada and Mexico – while it will also be staging the 2024 Copa America and is set to bid for the 2027 Women’s World Cup.