Benfica have been named the next team to join the Super League, with a report indicating that they are pushing to become Portugal’s first representatives.
At the moment, the Super League consists of 12 teams from England, Spain and Italy, but the plan is to find three more “founding members” before they start the competition as soon as possible.
Florentino Perez is looking for more members | Quality Sport Images / Getty Images
Monday gave us the fantastic magic story that indicates that Schalke had joined, but even if it was obviously rubbish, Benfica’s links to the competition are a little more confusing.
First, Record says that Benfica is lobbying for a place in the Super League, with talks already underway.
But is it actually true?
Following the announcement of the Super League, Lusa published a report that Benfica was opposed to the idea of the competition, claiming that a member of the club’s board had specifically stated that they disapproved of the idea.
• Six clubs that act entirely in their own interests • Six clubs that damage our league’s reputation • Six clubs choose to respect all the other clubs they sit with around the Premier League table • Six clubs that take for granted and betray football supporters
? https://t.co/JZSiLq6mUa
– 90min (@ 90min_Football) April 20, 2021
Well, that’s a little weird, but if we go back a few months to November 2020, we might find out what’s actually going on here.
Club manager Domingos Soares de Oliveira told Off the Pitch: “My opinion is that I am against a Super League. Even if Benfica would be one of the clubs that played in it.
“If that happens, it’s almost a brainless decision [to join]. But I prefer that it does not happen. “
So Benfica do not really want to be in the Super League, but because of the money and the status that comes with them, they would find it impossible not to be involved. How nice.
Soares de Oliveira believes money will talk | Gualter Fatia / Getty Images
“Of course I can understand that some of the big clubs want to force this Super League concept,” Soares de Oliveira continued. “But for our fans when it comes to real competition, it’s always about what’s happening here in Portugal.
“100% of our stakeholders expect us to generate results on the pitch and not off the pitch. Every time we say we want to generate more revenue, it’s not because we want to be number one or two in the world when it comes to revenue, it is because we want more funds to invest in the plan. ”
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