Wales players could miss out on Euros as UEFA confirms ban move

Wales’ top stars could miss out on the European Championships this summer after UEFA confirmed a move to ban players.

UEFA president Aleksandr Ceferin branded plans for a breakaway European Super League as “disgraceful” and confirmed that players who take part in it will be banned World Cup and European Championships, with bans for the latter competition being sought “as soon as possible”.

When asked if the ban would impact this summer’s European Championships he said that the situation was being “assessed” by a legal team.

Were a ban to come into force it would impact a number of Wales’ top stars, including Gareth Bale, Aaron Ramsey, and Neco Williams, which would severely hamper the team’s ability to compete.

The head of the European governing body was speaking at a media briefing after this morning’s UEFA Executive Committee meeting.

When he would stop any players from competing in this summer’s European Championships, Ceferin said: “We’re still assessing the situation with our legal team. It’s a bit too early.

“We will take all the sanctions that we can and we will inform you as soon as we have a clear answer. My opinion is that, as soon as possible, the players have to be banned from all our competitions.”

He added: “I cannot stress more strongly UEFA and the footballing world are united against the disgraceful, self-serving proposals we have seen, fuelled purely by greed.

“It’s a nonsense of a project. This idea is a spit in the face for all footballer lovers and our society. We will not allow them to take this away from us.”

‘Premier League’ 

Premier League clubs Manchester United Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur have signed up to the plans for the competition that will rival the Champions League.

Spanish giants Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have also agreed to join, as well as Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan from Italy.

No German or French clubs have yet to be associated with the breakaway, and there are reports that Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich declined to participate.

The list of Welsh players that could be impacted by a ban on playing international football include:

• Gareth Bale – Tottenham Hotspur
• Joe Rodon – Tottenham Hotspur
• Ben Davies – Tottenham Hotspur
• Neco Williams – Liverpool
• Daniel James – Manchester United
• Aaron Ramsey – Juventus
• Ben Woodburn – Liverpool
• Ethan Ampadu – Sheffield United (on loan from Chelsea)

The Super League said that they aimed to have 15 founding members and a 20-team league with five other clubs qualifying each season.