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Synchronized schedule? FIFA proposes rough international calendar blueprint
Posted: Thursday February 17, 2000 04:28 PM
ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) -- FIFA continued its struggle to develop an internationally harmonized schedule Thursday despite insistence from top European clubs only 48 hours earlier that the traditional seasonal calendar would remain untouched. FIFA's Football Committee, chaired by Spanish Football Federation President Angel Villar Llona and composed of such soccer legends as Pele, Sir Bobby Charlton, Franz Beckenbauer and Michel Platini, reviewed a FIFA proposal for a unified season lasting from February to November. According to the proposal, December and January would be reserved for holidays and preseason training, while July and August would be set aside for international competition such as the World Cup and continental championships. However, the issue of specific dates within a unified season remained unresolved. At a two-day workshop of club officials earlier in the week, which included the increasingly influential G-14 lobbying group consisting of Europe's most powerful teams such as Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and AC Milan, European teams were adamant that the international calendar and other continents' competitions be tailored to their needs. It also demanded the traditional August-to-May season remain unchanged. UEFA general secretary Gerhard Aigner had said he would have Juventus president Roberto Bettega explain their position to FIFA president Sepp Blatter. "I haven't received anything from UEFA. That statement came from the clubs and we have representatives from very important clubs here," Blatter said. "Mr. Bettega said 'we agree with you' but it'll be very difficult for us [UEFA] to change the seasonal calendar into a Gregorian calendar." Blatter was not without high-profile support. "I'm a director of a European club that's as powerful as any in the world, and we think a calendar should be put in place," said Charlton, a member of English club Manchester United's board. "The fact that everyone has been going in different directions has always created a problem. "It may well be that nothing has to change. A lot of people get frightened by February-November and it may well be fine if you can find your windows to fulfill your obligations." FIFA's Football Committee came to a consensus on five recommendations they intend to forward to FIFA's powerful Executive Committee. The Football Committee proposed that preliminary competitions for confederation national team championships should serve as World Cup qualifying tournaments at the same time. The committee also suggested limiting the number of international matches a national association may play per year, both official and friendlies. "There's so many problems with big clubs because they've invested a lot of money so they should get a fair crack at the whip," Charlton said. "We don't want to buy a Brazilian player who will be missing for 25 games a year." In addition, the committee wanted a rest period of at least four weeks integrated into the calendar. The group also proposed that 46 dates a year be reserved for league and cup competitions, with an additional 16 dates for international competition, which could also be used for domestic cup competitions in certain cases. Finally, the committee suggested a system of two-leg series in all continental qualifying phases, in order to reduce the number of times players are called away from their clubs.
"We release a player to go all the way to the other side of the world and that's a lot of time wasted for one match," said Charlton. "In a doubleheader you get rid of two matches in one period of time."
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