A statement by Ronald Koeman has gone wrong with Michael van Praag. The Barcelona coach recently said during a discussion about the Super League that UEFA is all about money. According to Van Praag, who said goodbye to UEFA as an honorary member last month, “Koeman should have looked into the situation for a while.” Van Praag is afraid that UEFA’s name will be tarnished by comments such as Koeman’s. “Then people soon start talking about UEFA mafia again, which is very unjustified,” said Van Praag.
“UEFA doesn’t listen to football people, they just think about money. That also applies to LaLiga. Look at the competition schedule, tomorrow we will not play until 10 pm ”, said Koeman on April 21, one day before the game of Barcelona against Getafe (5-2 win). “I like Koeman, but what I now heard him say in bad English on Spanish television; that made no sense “, Van Praag is quoted by it ANP. “UEFA only receives 6.5 percent of all revenues from the Champions League. They organize the tournament, let referees travel and book hotels for them. Also, UEFA has already spent 48 million euros on corona tests, so that everyone can play safely. ”
Barcelona is one of the founding clubs of the Super League. The club, which is struggling with an enormous debt of more than a billion euros, hoped for higher income with the switch to the new tournament. The participants in the Super League hoped to distribute 3.5 billion euros in prize money, while in the Champions League that amount is lower: 2 billion euros. “But if you run out of money, then you have to waste your time,” says Van Praag. “FC Dordrecht and Telstar must too. If all football players everywhere get paid 20 percent less, they will not stop playing football.”
“Shall I tell you something about Barcelona?”, Van Praag continues. “That club also participates in the Youth League, the Champions League for youth teams. UEFA pays that to the last cent. But a few years ago, Barcelona wanted 5000 euros. extra from UEFA, so that it could also serve a good lunch for the opponents. That club has a budget of 500 or 600 million, do you still understand? ”