‘Players will be rightly angry’: Football at loggerheads over plans for a salary cap
Plans to implement a salary cap in European football have received an immediate backlash, with unions accusing the game’s governing bodies of ignoring the views of players.
Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin revealed this week that talks had begun on introduce a cap in order to stabilise club finances and improve competition, and that “everybody agrees”.
That came as news to the Professional Footballers’ Association chief Maheta Molango, who insisted that there had been no consultation with players, who would not welcome the move.
“When players read that ‘everyone agrees’ with capping their wages, I think they will rightly be angry,” Molango told the PA news agency.
“Without proper engagement or consultation, players are continually being asked to play more and more games. New competitions are being created and existing tournaments expanded. These all generate more money within football.
“Capping the wages of those who create the ‘product’ that others continue to benefit from is not a solution to ensuring better financial management by leagues and clubs.
“Football’s leaders are quickly going to create a real problem if they continue to treat players like this. They need to be treated as the game’s most important stakeholders and must be central to these conversations.”
Uefa’s salary cap plans come amid concerns from players about increasing workloads, due to the continued expansion of major international tournaments and creation of a new Club World Cup tournament every four years.
The governing body is expected to propose a hard cap at a meeting on Friday and consult with other stakeholders, including players’ unions, thereafter. It is thought that any cap would likely apply to overall squad wage bill rather than individual players’ salaries.
A cap would threaten to suppress player earnings and therefore face resistance from unions. In 2021, the PFA successfully overturned the English Football League’s salary cap in the third and fourth tiers.
Uefa rejected an absolute cap just last year when it rewrote its financial regulations, but Ceferin revealed the measure was back on the agenda during an interview with US media outlet Men in Blazers.
“I already spoke with some people from the European Commission – we are trying to push that,” he said.
“But it has to be a collective agreement – every league and Uefa – because if we do it and the other leagues don’t, then it doesn’t make sense.
“Surprisingly, everyone agrees – big clubs, small clubs, state-owned clubs, billionaire-owned clubs – everybody agrees.
“I hope it can be made as soon as possible. We have just started to discuss it. I think that’s the solution.”