Manchester City CEO Ferran Soriano has been elected to the expanded European Club Association board, just two years after the club resigned from the group to join the failed European Super League.
City are now Champions of Europe and have a growing influence within the top levels of the sport, despite feeling for years that the traditional, established elite group of clubs were reluctant to see the Blues break into the latter stages of the Champions League.
The Blues resigned in 2021 along with the other founding members of the Super League, but re-joined after quickly pulling out of the failed breakaway competition following considerable fan backlash. Now, having established themselves as the best club in Europe, and mainstays in the Champions League, City have further standing with Soriano’s election to the ECA Board.
Of nine candidates, seven were nominated, with Soriano joined by Alessandro Antonello of Inter Milan, Jokin Aperribay of Real Sociedad, Jan-Christian Dreesen of Bayern Munich, Dennis te Kloese of Feyenoord, Pablo Longoria of Marseille and Oliver Mintzlaff of RB Leipzig. Napoli director Valentina de Laurentiis and Lyon CEO John Textor were the candidates to miss out.
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Soriano’s new role goes alongside his role as CEO of City and sister clubs New York City FC and Melbourne City. He will serve until 2027 and is the only Premier League representative on the ECA Subdivision 1 board, which is for clubs from the six highest-ranked associations in Europe. The Premier League spot had previously been held by Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy.
There is one other Premier League representative within the ECA leadership with Arsenal CEO Vinai Venkatesham appointed to the board of the Joint Venture between the ECA and European football’s governing body UEFA, designed to give clubs a greater influence in the commercial direction of UEFA’s club competitions.
City will view the election as a success, especially in light of the 115 Premier League charges currently brought against them for financial breaches. The Blues won their appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport over similar charges by UEFA in 2020, overturning a two-year ban on their participation in the Champions League.
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