Porto not interested in joining Super League, says club president

Madrid, April 19, 2021 (AFP) - Porto president Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa said on Monday the club reject the idea of the European Super League, despite receiving "informal contact" about joining the project.

Porto are not among the 12 founding clubs of the controversial competition, which threatens to alter the entire system of European football.

The statement published by the breakaway clubs said there is room for three more permanent members to be added but Pinto da Costa says two-time European champions Porto, who last won the Champions League in 2004, will not be one of them.

"There was some informal contact from some clubs, but we didn't pay much attention for two reasons," Pinto da Costa, told the club's official website on Monday.

"The first is that the European Union does not allow closed-shop competitions like in the NBA, for example. As the Portuguese Football Federation is against this, and as part of UEFA, we cannot participate in anything that is against the principles and rules of the European Union and UEFA.

"If this goes ahead, which I very much doubt, it won't be the end of UEFA and they will certainly keep having competitions. It must be recognised that competitions organised by UEFA are the official competitions.

"We are not concerned with being in or out, we are in the Champions League and we hope to continue to be for many years."

The 12 signed-up clubs are Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Tottenham, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan.

In a joint statement made with the leagues and federations in England, Spain and Italy on Sunday, UEFA have said participating players and clubs would be banned from "any other competition at domestic, European or world level".