Napoli president De Laurentiis wants to abolish Champions League

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has called for the Champions League and Europa League to be abolished. 

Carlo Ancelotti’s side secured second place in Serie A on Sunday, thanks to a dramatic 2-1 win over Cagliari. 

Napoli have now qualified for the Champions League in the past four seasons, but De Laurentiis has suggested that UEFA’s two European club competitions must be scrapped. 

Instead, De Laurentiis has proposed a new format that would see 80 teams compete in a single competition. 

It’s all over. The boys left it late but have bagged all three points!
#NapoliCagliari 2-1
@SerieA
#ForzaNapoliSempre pic.twitter.com/waKCIZ1XdL

— Official SSC Napoli (@en_sscnapoli) May 5, 2019

“The Champions League and the Europa League must be abolished,” De Laurentiis, who believes that Europe’s elite competition is not competitive enough, told Corriere della Sera. 

“The Champions League is now for a select few, while the Europa League has become a sort of consolation prize. 

“I would like to present them with a single tournament of 80 teams, to which the top seven teams from the Italian, French, English, German and Spanish leagues would enter, and the first four of the other leagues. 

“I would call it the European Cup and the games would be played on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, thus respecting the placement of the national championships over the weekend. 

“It’s all very outdated, we are often confronted with the same sparring partners. We play too little. To enjoy ourselves we have to watch Manchester City, Tottenham, Barcelona or Liverpool; our football is getting boring.” 

Ancelotti has come under criticism from some sections of Napoli’s support after failing to challenge Juventus’ dominance of Serie A, but De Laurentiis is happy with the former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain’s boss. 

“I am satisfied with the work of Ancelotti,” he added. “With [Cristiano] Ronaldo, Juventus has raised the level, we are competing with one of the best European teams.”