Executives
from clubs which sparked a civil war in English football by joining the
now-abandoned European Super League have been handed an ultimatum to step
down from key Premier League sub-committees.
Sky News has learned Richard Masters, the Premier League chief executive,
contacted executives on Wednesday including Bruce Buck, the Chelsea
chairman, and Vinai Venkatesham, Arsenal chief executive, to request they
relinquish their roles on the working groups.
Club sources said Mr Buck, who is a member of the Premier League's audit and
remuneration committee, and Mr Venkatesham, who sits on the Club Strategic
Advisory Group (CSAG), had been asked by Mr Masters to step down voluntarily
or face being removed against their will.
Ferran Soriano, who runs Manchester City, was also asked to step down from
CSAG, according to insiders.
The Premier League is also seeking the removal of the Manchester United and
Liverpool executives Ed Woodward and Tom Werner from its Club Broadcast
Advisory Group, the sources added.
Tottenham Hotspur, the sixth club involved in the planned defection, is not
thought to be represented on the affected Premier League committees. The
request from Mr Masters underlines the potentially protracted consequences
of the 'Big Six' clubs' efforts to join a continental league, which would
have resulted in England's six biggest clubs each receiving windfalls worth
hundreds of millions of pounds.
All six withdrew from the new competition on Tuesday following a vitriolic
backlash from fans, players and coaches, and the threat of sporting and
legislative sanctions from football federations and governments.
Mr Woodward announced on Tuesday evening his long tenure at Old Trafford
would come to an end later this year, triggering speculation the Glazer
family may seek to sell its remaining stake in the club after more than 15
years.
The Premier League's request to the executives to step down from key working
groups followed a meeting between the 14 other 'shareholders', in which they
expressed bitterness at the duplicity of the clubs which had been in secret
talks to join the Super League.
The Daily Mail reported some of the 14 clubs had complained the Super League
clubs executives had been "acting like spies" during meetings of the
relevant Premier League sub-committees.
At least one of the club executives asked to step down on Wednesday is said
to have reacted angrily to the suggestion.
Mr Masters is understood to have sought a voluntary decision from the 'Big
Six' executives but warned they risked being forcibly removed from the
working groups if they did not agree to step down.
Premier League executives are ultimately keen to heal the rifts which have
simmered in recent months over potential reforms but which erupted into open
warfare at the weekend.
However, Mr Masters' request for the executives' removal underlines the fact
that divisions between the 'Big Six' and the other clubs are likely to be
exposed for some time.
After Sky News revealed details of the Super League negotiations last
October, Mr Woodward told Wall Street analysts he was unaware of the project
and his attention was focused on reforming existing European club
competitions.
Formal confirmation of the Super League's existence on Sunday night sparked
fury throughout European football, with an unprecedented alignment of
political and sporting figures against the breakaway from UEFA.
A Premier League spokeswoman declined to comment on Wednesday.
Henry, Glazer and Soriano apologise for
Super League involvement
Liverpool owner John W Henry was the first of those involved in plans to
form a breakaway Super League to apologise.
In a video message on Wednesday morning, Henry - who bought the club in 2010
- took responsibility for the decision to join the Super League and admitted
he had 'let down' the fans.
He said: "I want to apologise to all the fans and supporters of Liverpool
Football Club for the disruption I caused over the past 48 hours.
"It goes without saying but should be said that the project put forward was
never going to stand without the support of the fans. No one ever thought
differently in England. Over these 48 hours, you were very clear that it
would not stand. We heard you. I heard you."
Later on Wednesday, United co-chairman Joel Glazer "apologised unreservedly
for the unrest" caused by the Super League, in an open letter to fans.
Glazer, who was unveiled as Super League vice-chairman when the bombshell
announcement was made on Sunday, admits he and the rest of United's owners
"got it wrong" and are now focused on making amends.
In a rare moment of communication with the supporters, Glazer wrote:
"Although the wounds are raw and I understand that it will take time for the
scars to heal, I am personally committed to rebuilding trust with our fans
and learning from the message you delivered with such conviction.
"We continue to believe that European football needs to become more
sustainable throughout the pyramid for the long-term. However, we fully
accept that the Super League was not the right way to go about it.
"In seeking to create a more stable foundation for the game, we failed to
show enough respect for its deep-rooted traditions - promotion, relegation,
the pyramid - and for that we are sorry."
Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano wrote to the club's
supporters to apologise for their involvement in European Super League
proposals.
In an email sent out on Wednesday, Soriano wrote: "As always, when we make
choices and decisions, we do so with the best interests of the club in mind
and we believed that being part of such an initiative could give us a voice
that might be imperative to our future ability to succeed and grow.
"In making that choice we failed to remind ourselves of the unbreakable link
between the passion of our fans and the right to have the opportunity to
earn success.
"It is a truth that is fundamental to the DNA of Manchester City and the
board deeply regrets taking a decision that lost sight of the historic
values of the club.
"We made a mistake and we sincerely apologise to our fans for the
disappointment, frustration and anguish caused by the last 72 hours."
top