Champions League would be a ‘circus’ if played outside Europe, says Bayern chief

The Champions League risks becoming a travelling circus if matches are taken outside Europe, according to the boss of one of the continent’s leading clubs.

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin hinted in April that a Champions League final could be played in the United States in the future, while sources close to the European Club Association have also spoken favourably about playing a revamped Super Cup in the US in the years ahead.

However, the chief executive of Bayern Munich, Jan-Christian Dreesen, gave the idea short shrift at the ECA’s General Assembly in Berlin on Thursday.

“For sure we have to develop our tournament, but on the other side my personal view is quite clear. We are not the Cirque du Soleil,” he said.

“We have a European championship, and we have to play our matches in Europe.”

Dreesen, one of the ECA vice-chairs, also insisted European football did not need to be “afraid” of the rising influence of the Saudi league, with its clubs having spent more than £700million on Europe-based players this summer.

“I think we shouldn’t be worried about that,” he added.

“We will have to see in the future if it’s sustainable, and then we will handle it. And as Nasser (Al Khelaifi, ECA chairman) has said already, we have a fantastic competition, we have this tradition with the European clubs, so we don’t have to be afraid.”