'The current system is not delivering' - Juve president Agnelli reveals 'fights' with Ceferin over future of football

Juventus President Andrea Agnelli says he has had "productive arguments and fights" with UEFA boss Aleksander Ceferin over football's future as he believes that fans care about the game in a different way than yesteryear.

Agnelli believes that high-level football is at a "crossroads" amid talk of a UEFA Super League and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that has impacted finances throughout the sport.

And Agnelli says that he believes that too many matches are not competitive, turning fans away from the game and towards other forms of entertainment.

What's been said

“We have to put the fans at the centre. The current system is not delivering for modern fans," Agnelli said at the ECA General Assembly

“Researches show that many traditional assumptions about fans need to change. If we look at the research, we can say a third of fans globally follow at least two cubs, which is very different from a few years ago.

"Also, 10 per cent of fans follow players and not clubs, 2/3 follow football more for a modern fear of missing out or just because they like big events, 40 per cent of the 16 to 24-year-old fans, the famous Gen Z, have no interest in football whatsoever.

“There are too many games that are not competitive, both at a domestic and international level.

“Fans can’t be taken for granted and we have to deliver the best possible competition for them or we risk of losing them.

“That’s why I welcome the conversation that us, as ECA, have had in the last couple of months with UEFA for the development of the game.

“Although not present here, I’d like to thank President Ceferin for the arguments and almost the fights we had from October to December.

“But they have been very productive arguments and fights.”

Finance in football

With fans unable to attend matches for nearly one whole year, clubs all over the world have reported massive financial losses.

However, several of the world's top clubs have been reported to be interested in forming a highly-lucrative European Super League that would change the face of football forever.

“I look at the governance projects, or some of the projects developed in some countries, or the backing of JP Morgan for the leaks that we’ve had over a European Super League," Agnelli said.

“That has been on the media and is common knowledge to everybody. If there is an interest from these kinds of players and big financial institutions, it means there is a potential for a bright future within our industry.

“These individuals, contrary to some of our most common stakeholders, are not too interested in solidarity, but their interest is in return on investments.

“It means that our industry is an industry which his highly palatable for return in investments and that means if we change ourselves, we can look forward to those return in investment ourselves.

“Football, finance and governance are at a crossroads and this has been evident and exacerbated by the pandemic.

“It is our duty to intercept and act or else the risk is the one of imploding.”

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