OFFICIALLY CONFIRMED BY UEFA:POOL WILL DEFEND CUP

www SG

Tuesday, June 7, 2005
Martina won't back Liverpool

Tennis great Martina Navratilova has refused to back calls for Liverpool to be allowed to defend their Champions League title.

The Reds won the European Cup on penalties after a thrilling 3-3 draw against Italian giants AC Milan two weeks ago.

However, the team did not qualify for the Champions League next season as they only finished fifth in the Premiership.

A host of politicians, celebrities and sporting greats have called for UEFA to bend the rules and allow Liverpool a wildcard entry.

But nine-times Wimbledon winner Navratilova, who today visited Anfield to see the new trophy, said it was Liverpool's own fault that they did not qualify and it was too late to change the rules.

She said: 'I think the rules are pretty obvious.

'You have four teams from England that can go through and Liverpool didn't make it.

'They should concentrate on the Premier League instead. Just because they won it, it doesn't mean they should bend the rules.

'I think a champion should be given the chance to defend their title, but at the moment, the rules are the rules.

'Liverpool did it to themselves. They shot themselves in the foot.'

Navratilova, who was in Liverpool to play in the city's three-day International Tennis Tournament, which starts tomorrow, posed with the cup alongside Ivan Ljubicic, her opponent in a mixed doubles match.

Nine Merseyside MPs will hand over a dossier tomorrow in support of Liverpool being granted a chance to defend their Champions League crown to FA executive director David Davies.

The Liverpool Echo have gathered 3,000 messages of support from all over the world, with more continuing to roll in.

-------------------------------------------

no doubt she has her point but how useful is the opinion of a tennis star on soccer matter?

but she is right that liverpool shld concentrate on epl.

F Takumi SG

http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/archivedirs/mediawatch/2005/jun/MW8377050615-1158.htm

LIVERPOOLS journey to Istanbul ensured they made the most Champions League money of any club in Europe last season.
Figures released last night revealed the Anfield side earned £20.5million from TV money and performance bonuses, £1.7m ahead of second-placed Chelsea.

AC Milan, the side Rafael Benitez's men so memorably overcame in the final, were third in the table with £17.5m, with Arsenal fourth on £15.7m.

The UEFA table proves how crucial it was for Liverpool to eventually be allowed to defend their trophy, with the extra rounds they are now having to play meaning they could well top last season's figure should they go all the way again.

Manchester United's new owner Malcolm Glazer, however, will be concerned to see that his side was not one of the leading earners.

United paid the price for a poor season in the Champions League and for taking part as England's third-placed team by bringing in just £10.9m. They were in eighth place behind Werder Bremen of Germany.

Henk Potts, football finance expert for Barclays stockbrokers, said: "These figures show that English football is the dominant financial force in Europe, and the value of the Champions League TV contracts to the clubs who take part.

"The earnings from the Premier League are very important but the Champions League is the big cash cow of modern football. If you can make it to the Champions League for several seasons then it really is the road to riches.

"However these figures also show how important success on the pitch is. Manchester United had a poor season in Europe last year and that is reflected in the figures.

"Malcolm Glazer will want the club to be rising pretty rapidly up the earnings table but to do that he has to invest in players. That's the difficulty facing every club - how much to invest in players in order to bring in even more money."

The UEFA figures just show the distribution of performance bonuses and market pool cash - money from TV,, sponsorship and new media - and do not include gate receipts, another area where English clubs outperform their European rivals.

Onepot of £20m is split depending on domestic league position - the reigning English champions (last season Arsenal) got 40%, Chelsea 30%, third-placed Manchester United and fourth-placed Liverpool 15% each.

Another pot of £20m is split among the English clubs according to how many games each side plays in the tournament.

Should five English clubs qualify for the group stage next season - Liverpool must negotiate three qualifying rounds to get there, while Everton must play one - earnings will fall because the pots will have to be split five ways rather than four. Similarly, should only three qualify - and Chelsea and Arsenal have done so automatically - their earnings will rise.

As Scotland's sole representative, Celtic got the market pool for their association to themselves and earned £7m, just below Italian side Roma (£7.1m) and more than Spanish club Deportivo La Coruna (£6.6m).

TIB1133B SG

What if Bolton had been 4th instead? Would there be such a hoo-ha?

« Previous Page