FLORENTINO PEREZ, the big-spending president of Real Madrid, wants the world’s wealthiest football clubs to create a European Super League, and is ready to take on Uefa if they do not adapt the Champions League to better suit the ambitions of the biggest clubs.

“We have to agree a new European Super League which guarantees that the best always play the best — something that does not happen in the Champions League,” Perez said on Spanish television yesterday. He indicated that he would push for a breakaway “closed shop” competition if Uefa refused to consider his proposal. Perez, who in the first month since returning to the presidency of the nine-time European champions has committed £180m on new players, has already clashed with European football’s governing body over spending.

He insists he does not want to replace domestic competition, just guarantee that clubs such as Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, Liverpool, Milan and Juventus could rely on participating every season in a lucrative elite competition, no matter where they finish in La Liga, the Premier League or Serie A. Madrid have qualified for the Champions League, the final of which will be at the Bernabeu in 2010, in each of the last 12 seasons but have not reached the quarter-finals since 2004.

Milan, Italy’s most decorated club in Europe, failed to qualify for the competition last season and admit the loss of income has affected their transfer dealings. The market has been dominated this summer by Madrid, who set a world record last month by signing Cristiano Ronaldo for £80m. They also spent £56m on Kaka, who joined from Milan, and last week £31m on Lyons striker Karim Benzema. Uefa president Michel Platini is perturbed but says: “If Madrid have the credit to do so, what can I do? We’ll try to put rules in place but it may take two or three years.”

Since assuming the Uefa presidency, Platini has tried to make the Champions League more open to clubs from outside the traditional elite, notably by introducing an unseeded third qualifying round as of this August, the sort of move Perez thinks puts at risk the guaranteed participation of the heavyweights. Platini is dismissive of the possibility of a breakaway league: “I don’t think it’s a threat.”

The last serious move to form a rebel European league, in the late 1990s, was led by Milan. Uefa responded by offering more Champions League places to clubs from the stronger domestic competitions, notably Italy, England and Spain.

EUROPE’S POTENTIAL SUPER LEAGUE
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal, Internazionale, AC Milan, Juventus,Bayern Munich, Lyons, Porto, Celtic, Rangers, Olympiakos