It is a story that is creating a growing anger off the pitch, that many involved see as increasingly dictating what happens on the pitch.
In the last few days, one club who had recently joined the new Union of European Clubs [UEC] – set up for those clubs who do not feel their interests are sufficiently represented at the top level – suddenly received a letter from a much more prominent organisation. The European Club Association [ECA], the elite body of clubs currently headed by Paris Saint-Germain chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi, told them that recent qualifications ensured they had now met the requirements to be an Associated Member for the new cycle of 2023-27.
