Michel Platini elected new UEFA President

Platini President

blatters boy safely installed.

David Plattini would have made more sense.

Well, Blatter has his mpuppet safely installed for the next 20 years. Farewell to any fond dreams of decency in soccer, of not bribing small federations with three times their annual budget and of corrupt officials being removed instead of shunted sideways.

Platini does have a few good views that I agree with. Sounds like he wants to take the Champions League back to how it was and give more teams from other countries a chance to enter it.

Agree with 3Ls. His move to only allow a max. of 3 teams from each league to particaipate is a good move.

Obviously a tat bias being a Scot, more chance for one of us to go through.

Well it was Scotland that made that proposal in the first place - but I agree it is a good one; Champions League is like deja vu these days. I also like the idea of clubs having to field at least 6 players from the club's country. Basically change everything! Football is in danger of choking to death on money.

I think it just became a joke, How is it the 'Champions League' when you've got 4th place teams competing?

Sometimes at the expense of Champions of other 'lesser' leagues.

I know that the quality migth be better, but if that's the case, why not just make it the 'Dead Good Teams' Cup

that's a stupid idea - why should football be any different from any other business in the EU? they should be able to play as many nationalities as they like within the existing legal framework. And if you are arguing that because it "limits the chances of england's (or whoever's) youngsters" then that's crap too coz the cream always rises to the top.

The dead good and dead rich teams. Exactly, it should be champions even if some of those champions aren't as good the 4th placed teams in some leagues. Playing at that level will eventually improve the quality - short term pain yes but it's better than stagnation.

It should go back to the old days of Champions League, EUFA Cup and Cup Winners Cup. The latter being my personal favourite, that was an out and out cup competition, none of this seeding malarky, you get who you get and thats it.

Its up to EUFA and the sponsors to spread the money fairly so that all the teams benefit.

I liked the old cup winners cup, occasionally you would get some seriously crappy 3rd division team who for cup matches end up playing like Brazil

Platini is bent on reviving soccer's real values: Beginning tomorrow with the UEFA-Cup Final between Sevilla and Espanyol, the Cup will no longer be handed to the players on a podium in the field where everyone can see them and there is room for all concerned and they can jump up and down and wave to their fans.
Instead the players will climb the stands in single file to show their affinity to the spectators and prove that they are one with them and be congratulated by whoever happens to be in the Executive Lounge with the free tickets and comfy seats, all in plain view of the greedy tv cameras just bursting to broadcast live coverage worldwide. By golly, there's Platini on TV again, congratulating the winning team, see how he hasn't lost touch with the paying spectators, the ones who finance the players' salaries and buy over-priced merchandise with the official UEFA logo! Touching sight indeed.
Frigging attention whore.

He's bang on correct. Platini has pretty much done everything as a footballer and he knows what is best for the game.

They removed the steps from Wembley, which is a damn shame. Fans who have watched England winning the World Cup, teams winning classic FA Cup & League Cup finals will all recall how their team took those few extra steps to receive the trophy they'd won. Its an iconic football image.

The marketing boffins came up with the idea that having the stand in the middle of the ground gives all the fans an unobstructed view of the team receiving the trophy...so the fans stood directly behind the players then... Of course its more to do with the sponsors name plastered all over the boards.

The steps(IMO) arent there for the players to show they are one with the fans or any such bollocks. The steps are there for the players, they've done all the hard work, they're knackered, the one last task they have to do is to walk up some steps and receive their trophy.


We dont actually. The TV money and sponsorship deals pay for that. You'll find that gate receipts make up a tiny fraction of a players wage.

Exactly: Dead on their feet and then being forced to climb steps. Actually, it's Platini himself who can't be bothered to stagger a few steps onto the pitch. Have you seen how much weight he has put on?
EDIT: The oneness with the spectators is Platini's own quote. Bunch of pathos = pathetic.