Football
Al-Khelaifi vows PSG will remain with UEFA
Nasser Al-Khelaifi says "football is a game for everyone" and vowed Paris Saint-Germain will remain in UEFA competitions going forward.
Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi has struck a huge blow to the founding clubs in the European Super League by vowing his team will remain playing in UEFA competitions.
The French champions and Bayern Munich were two of the biggest teams not to commit to the breakaway continental tournament.
Six teams from the Premier League along with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, Inter and Milan were revealed on Sunday to be the 12 founding clubs of the new lucrative competition to which they would have guaranteed access every season.
The proposals have attracted widespread condemnation, with even Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp and Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola – whose sides are involved – making clear they disagreed with the concept.
UEFA has unveiled its own new format for the Champions League, expanding the group stage and increasing the number of teams from 32 to 36 from 2024.
It is this structure which Al-Khelaifi believes in and he insists PSG will continue to operate under, dashing hopes that the Ligue 1 heavyweights may ultimately join the ESL.
Al-Khelaifi issued a statement on Tuesday after he was re-elected to the UEFA Executive Committee as a European Club Association (ECA) representative.
"Paris Saint-Germain holds the fine belief that football is a game for everyone," he said.
"I have been consistent on this since the very beginning.
"As a football club, we are a family and a community, whose fabric is our fans - I believe we shouldn't forget this.
"There is a clear need to advance the existing UEFA competition model, presented by UEFA yesterday and concluding 24 months' of extensive and collaborative consultation across the whole European football landscape.
"We believe that any proposal without the support of UEFA - an organisation that has been working to progress the interests of European football for nearly 70 years - does not resolve the issues currently facing the football community, but is instead driven by self-interest.
"Paris Saint-Germain will continue to work with UEFA, the European Club Association and all stakeholders of the football family based on the principles of good faith, dignity and respect for all."
Of his re-election, the PSG chief added: "I am honoured by the trust placed in me by my colleagues of the ECA to represent them on the UEFA Executive Committee.
"European football is at a pivotal moment, in which all stakeholders should work together; in good faith, with dignity, and to protect the game we all love."
Earlier, UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin thanked the club officials who have stood by Champions League reform proposals.
He was speaking at the UEFA Congress the day after criticising those involved in the breakaway European Super League in emotional comments.
Ceferin picked out Al-Khelaifi, who was present at the event in Switzerland, for praise, calling him "a great man" and adding that he had shown he "respects football and its values".
After a 3-2 win over Saint-Etienne in Ligue 1 on Sunday, PSG are at home to Angers in the Coupe de France quarter-final on Wednesday.
Head coach Mauricio Pochettino said: "It is hard to express an opinion [on the Super League], we must take precautions because we do not know everything under the surface.
"We will see what happens in the next few days to give an opinion.
"We are currently still in three competitions [Ligue 1, the Coupe de France and Champions League], so we must focus on it and focus above all on the game.
"The Coupe de France is a special competition for the Parisians, for the players and the club. We're really attached to this competition.
"We hope Kylian [Mbappe] will be able to continue in the same way through to the end of the season. He's in great form, all the better for the team.
"The atmosphere has always been good since I arrived, but the win over Saint-Etienne gave the squad an extra boost of energy."
European Super League updates live
Follow the latest developments relating to the proposed breakaway European Super League here.