The head of UEFA defends the new format while warning against football’s “Vicious Circle”

Aleksander Čeferin, president of UEFA, said he was extremely happy with the Champions League’s new structure in an interview with SportMediaset.

He praised this season as “fantastic,” highlighting the thrill and surprise that surfaced, especially on the last day of the group stage. Even historically skeptics are starting to recognize the improvements’ entertaining potential, he said. Čeferin highlighted the drama and competition presented by the new format, citing PSG’s near escape from early elimination as an example.

But with the enlarged Club World Cup approaching, Čeferin also addressed growing worries about the crowded football schedule.

He emphasized the delicate balance that UEFA must maintain by acknowledging the conundrum of player burnout with clubs’ financial needs. “The schedule is full, but clubs want more games to make money, and players are getting more and more hurt,” he said. According to Čeferin, it is a “vicious circle” that symbolizes the larger conflict in contemporary football between player welfare, sporting integrity, and financial viability.