Source: uefa.com.
The UEFA Executive Committee has approved the change of name for the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League from 2009/10.
The UEFA Executive Committee has approved the change of name for the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League from 2009/10.
The new UEFA Europa League logo (©UEFA)
'New impetus'
The new name heralds major changes to the competition, which will have a new 48-team group stage with centralised marketing of broadcast rights, a presenting sponsor and an official match ball in addition to centralised sponsorship from the knockout stages and a new logo and visual identity. UEFA President Michel Platini said: "These changes will improve this historic competition which is very important for UEFA and for European football, as it gives more fans, players and clubs the thrill of European club football. I am convinced the new format will give the UEFA Europa League a successful new impetus."
Wholesale changes
The changes to the name, logo and brand identity of the competition are the next logical step following the decision to alter the format of the UEFA Cup and create a true group stage, with both home and away matches. That decision was taken by the UEFA Executive Committee in Lucerne, Switzerland, back in December 2007. The change of name better reflects the format of the competition and with the enhancements to the logo and brand, the changes are such that from the 2009/10 season the UEFA Cup will effectively become a new competition.
Changing landscape
The new name and logo will help underline the competition's special character and unique sporting appeal. The new format will encourage teams from emerging countries or lesser-known teams to challenge the old order, and the new identity will seek to reflect that. UEFA's ambition in making all these changes is to rejuvenate the competition in the light of the new European football landscape, which has changed significantly with the continued success of the UEFA Champions League, so that the UEFA Europa League can establish itself as a major competition.
Hi Edgar,
ReplyDeleteThere is another change that uefa going to do: they will change the club coefficient system from 2009/2010.For the club coefficient Only the 20% of country ranking will be considered and it seems that the points gained in qualifying rounds will count for team ranking too. Moreover changes will be introduced about bonus points distribution.
Bert Kassies found a greek article about it and someone tried to traduce it, but it's not very clear how the changes will be applied to previous seasons (points for the qualifying rounds for previous seasons will be considered retroactively?). You can see this interesting forum discussion:
http://kassiesa.com/uefaforum/view.php?topic=20080904192447.xml&PHPSESSID=23dafc9ed0ea86a430bd7165b22ddc91 (why in the hell the URL tag does not work here?)
Do you know someone in UEFA who can explain more details about the proposal of Uefa executive commitee?
You have to use the 'a' tag.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info, I will read the topic as soon as I can.