THST has today written to the Executive Board of Tottenham Hotspur FC registering our opposition to proposals for a European Super League and setting out some core principles that any changes to the structure of European Football must address.The full letter is reproduced below.
We are pleased to read the subsequent statement issued by the Premier League, unanimously opposing the proposal to reform club competitions from 2024, and welcome the recognition of fans as key stakeholders in their statement.
We will continue to lobby for any changes to reflect the core principles set out below, alongside fellow fan organisations throughout the country and alongside the FSF, who issued their own statement this afternoon.
We are pleased to read the subsequent statement issued by the Premier League, unanimously opposing the proposal to reform club competitions from 2024, and welcome the recognition of fans as key stakeholders in their statement.
We will continue to lobby for any changes to reflect the core principles set out below, alongside fellow fan organisations throughout the country and alongside the FSF, who issued their own statement this afternoon.
Daniel Levy, Chairman THFC
Donna-Maria Cullen, Executive Director, THFC
Rebecca Caplehorn, Director of Football Operations, THFC
Simon Bamber, Commercial Director, THFC
Matthew Collecott, Group Operations and Finance Director, THFC
5 June 2019
BY EMAIL
Dear Daniel, Donna, Rebecca, Simon and Matthew,
As our football Club is a member of the European Club Association (ECA), we read with interest media reports on the prospect of a “super league” which could reshape the game.
We thought it was appropriate to outline our views on the reported proposals so that the Club is aware of widespread supporter opposition to these plans.
At a meeting of Premier League fan groups convened by the Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF) in May 2019 there was unanimous opposition to the concept of a super league and unanimous support for these six principles.
Key principles:
The ECA’s reported proposals break these principles.
Fan representatives will meet again on Saturday 29th June 2019, at the Annual General Meeting of the newly-merged FSF and Supporters Direct, to formally adopt the position.
Should UEFA and the ECA continue with super league proposals which break these principles, we anticipate fan groups across Europe joining forces to oppose the changes.
With that in mind, we wanted to write to request that you show support for these six principles and we would be interested to hear your views on the ECA’s plans at your earliest opportunity.
Yours faithfully,
Martin Cloake
Katrina Law I Co-chairs, THST
Donna-Maria Cullen, Executive Director, THFC
Rebecca Caplehorn, Director of Football Operations, THFC
Simon Bamber, Commercial Director, THFC
Matthew Collecott, Group Operations and Finance Director, THFC
5 June 2019
BY EMAIL
Dear Daniel, Donna, Rebecca, Simon and Matthew,
As our football Club is a member of the European Club Association (ECA), we read with interest media reports on the prospect of a “super league” which could reshape the game.
We thought it was appropriate to outline our views on the reported proposals so that the Club is aware of widespread supporter opposition to these plans.
At a meeting of Premier League fan groups convened by the Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF) in May 2019 there was unanimous opposition to the concept of a super league and unanimous support for these six principles.
Key principles:
- Promotion and relegation based on sporting performance - from the bottom of the pyramid to qualification for Europe
- No to closed leagues or franchise football – qualify on results, not through history or heritage
- Weekends are for domestic leagues – protect fan culture, home and away. No live broadcasts on Saturdays at 3:00pm
- We want competitive leagues – no to even more concentration of wealth and on-going domination by a fixed few top clubs
- Domestic football comes first – protect the pyramid and cup competitions
- Share the wealth – the money from elite football should be shared across the whole game
The ECA’s reported proposals break these principles.
Fan representatives will meet again on Saturday 29th June 2019, at the Annual General Meeting of the newly-merged FSF and Supporters Direct, to formally adopt the position.
Should UEFA and the ECA continue with super league proposals which break these principles, we anticipate fan groups across Europe joining forces to oppose the changes.
With that in mind, we wanted to write to request that you show support for these six principles and we would be interested to hear your views on the ECA’s plans at your earliest opportunity.
Yours faithfully,
Martin Cloake
Katrina Law I Co-chairs, THST