Warning: Champions League Money Creating German Competitiveness Gap

• ESPN FC, Thursday, April 18, 2013 12:18 PM

Following Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness’ comments that a duopoly is developing in German soccer and that Bayern has won the Bundesliga too easily this season, Christian Seifert, CEO of the DFL (which runs Germany’s soccer leagues), warned that the wealth generated by the UEFA Champions League is harming the domestic game’s competitiveness.

"The DFL can do nothing about it. Only UEFA can," Seifert said. "UEFA have to tax their brains about what will happen in future, because it is obvious that the current distribution has a massive influence on domestic competitions." He added that despite the presence of both Dortmund and Bayern in the Champions League semifinals, German soccer needs more than two successful clubs in Europe. "The league now has a second club gaining an international reputation, but we must wish for a third and then a fourth club to follow in the footsteps of Bayern Munich."

Seifert said that even if the likes of Dortmund and Bayern waived their domestic prize money, the others would not be able to close the gap on them due to their Champions League earnings. The DFL chief said he would be happy to hold talks about the growing debate over competitiveness.

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