[misha]

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - AC Milan's Champions League final victory over Liverpool on Wednesday left a bitter-sweet taste among many of European soccer's top officials who believe they should never have been in the competition in the first place.

For Milan's 2-1 win in the Olympic Stadium, brings the spotlight back on to a deeper problem that soccer, and sport in general, is currently having to live with on an almost daily basis: the fear of court action which can erode the power of ruling sporting bodies.

On the pitch, the Italian club won Europe's top prize fair and square and the image of veteran Paolo Maldini being handed the trophy by Michel Platini -- the former Juventus player now officiating at his first Champions League final as UEFA president -- was one to savour.

According to senior officials at European soccer's governing body if Milan's match-fixing indiscretions were fast-forwarded by 12 months, they would not be admitted to the prestigous competition next season.

Milan were deducted points for their involvement in the Italian match-rigging scandal and lost their automatic place for the competition.

But they were handed a slot in the qualifiers by UEFA because UEFA decided they had "insufficient legal basis in the regulations" to deny Milan a place, much as they would clearly have liked to.

Since then the governing body has amended its rules in a bid to allow it to decide who should and who shouldn't be allowed enter its own competitions.

"If these new statutes had been in place, Milan would most likely have been denied entry on sporting grounds," a UEFA official explained at the same time as Milan's happy hordes were heading home to Italy.
Unfortunately at the time, our lawyers told us that we would not win the case, should Milan appeal the decision."

SPORT'S FUTURE

But even though the new UEFA rules are in place, the Swiss-based body still cannot be 100 percent assured of preventing a club entering its competitions, pointing to a question now being asked by UEFA and many other sports officials in general -- who is in charge ?

The Milan case also points to the urgency and importance of next month's European Commission paper on the future of sport, which will propose a strategy for how sport should be run across the European Union.

Last year Milan would have been free to take their chances with an appeal in the civil courts which, if they had won, would have forced UEFA to reverse its decision.

Whether they can do so in the future remains an issue at the moment. If they go to court, UEFA could well follow them in with a counter case.

UEFA does not want to go down that route but knows that if clubs feel they can challenge a ruling they will.

The issue does not just concern Milan. What would have happened if West Ham United, for example, had qualified for Europe through their league position in England after being found guilty of inconsistencies in their handling of the Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano transfers.

"The Premier League found them guilty, but didn't deduct points. However, if we (UEFA) wanted to still stop them entering on sporting grounds, they would most likely go to court and plead a restriction of trade," the official said

"West Ham could base their case on the precedence of the Premier League decision, despite the fact that these are UEFA competitions, run by UEFA and so UEFA should be able to decide who enters."

Sporting bodies, such as UEFA and FIFA, are seeking for a dispensation from regular EU rules, citing sport as a social movement, rather than a business model.

In other words, UEFA and FIFA believe they should be allowed to run soccer as they see fit. It makes sense to them as it does to most fans. They hope Europe's law-makers see it that way too.

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[redbabies]

Do you care about this?

I don't! Coz we are the (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif) 's of Europe

[Rossoneri7]

Do you care about this?

I don't! Coz we are the  (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif) 's of Europe

Siamo Noi Siamo Noi ... Campioni d'Europa Siamo Noi !!! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif)

[misha]

Do you care about this?

I don't! Coz we are the  (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif) 's of Europe

I don't but it's still a litlle irritating

[Milan Are Brilli...]

Those f****n scousers...

No, nothing ever goes for you...

You murder fans in a final, 5 year ban, you should NEVER have been allowed back into it.

You win in Istanbul but you were outside the Champions League spot so you shouldn't qualify according to the rules, however the rules were changed you got let in.

In Fifa's rules a player can't play for 3 clubs in the same season, however the rules were changed for Mascherano and he was allowed.

Stop the f**k moaning and live with it. The amount of stuff you get yet we never hear you talk about that.

Oh and Liverpool fans could have caused a riot on Wednesday (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

We are European Champions you aren't live with it (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif) (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif)

[dst]

This is our trophy! Cry as much as you want now...

Like Ash said, I don't understand who a footballer is, against the rules, allowed to play for a third team in the same season. The same footballer who's transfer was found not to be legitimate...

But Milan is too big a club to bother about such things!

Thank you losers for making our victory even sweeter!! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/cool.gif)

[Warchant]

piss and moan, piss and moan

we are kings of europe

suck it

[Bluesummers]

i am sick and tired of this bullshit that keeps coming up. Yes we cheated and yes we got punished. We had -8 points, we had to go back to qualifying from the very start. We couldn't really buy players till mid august. We had to play with a team that had absoloutly no effect in the third of the field. Gilardino inzaghi and oliviera were absoloute trash throughout most of the season till ronaldo came. We had no excuse, we played manchester, bayern and liverpool and we beat them all. If thats not good enough, then i dont know what is.

[Fillipo Simone]

Honestly, will this ever stop?

I mean, when will our boys be free of such sh@t?? Do we have to get relegated or what? (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)

[han2503]

This just really makes me laugh.

It's just all the same sh!t with the English media hyping machine, how come they don't talk about how lucky with the ref calls they got in Istanbul but just call it a miracle. Or howthey were INSANELY lucky in 05 but keep moaning about a deflected freekick which is as much part of football as kicking the ball is (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

I read an article 'Liverpool downed by handball goal' First of all the ball went across Pippo's chest, secondly how come they don't talk about the fact that Liverpool's only goal in that match came from an offside position or when Kaka was through on goal but was stopped for a ridiculous offside decision which was as clear as day that Kaka was at least 2 meters onside. (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

Pure bull sh!t, as Kaka Is Brilliant said, how come the English media don't talk about how many times the rules where bent for those f@cking Scousers in this competition.

We are the European champions on merit, we played great football along the way and apart from the first half where Liverpool's only plan was to stop us from playing we were the better team on the night AGAIN. And this time we deservedly won.

Football is won by out scoting your opponents, and we did that, so they better shut the f@ck up !!!!!!!

[han2503]

Alan Green: Pool and UEFA the big losers - and on all fronts!


I suppose what goes around comes around. The game in Istanbul in 2005 was incredible and partly masked the fact, however memorable the comeback, that Liverpool beat a markedly superior AC Milan.


The reverse was true on Wednesday night in Athens. This time, the Italians lost to a better team.

People got carried away with that Italian demolition of Manchester United in the semi-final at San Siro. Milan ARE aging and they're not that good.

Tell me - who played well in Ancelotti's team in the Champions League final?

Honestly, I can't think of any: maybe, Nesta. They were poor, giving the ball away to an extraordinary degree.

And UEFA will be embarrassed that they're the new European champions. This is a club that was heavily embroiled in the corruption scandal that engulfed Italian football last summer and found guilty.

Initially, the points deduction imposed meant they didn't qualify for the Champions League and UEFA was relieved.

Then the deduction was reduced and Milan were reprieved.

Bluntly, they should never have been in the tournament never mind being in a position of winning it.

However, for that, Liverpool have only themselves to blame. It's one thing to wake up the following morning thinking, well, " we lost to a better team".

Instead Benitez and his players are well aware they had a great opportunity to win club football's biggest prize for the second time in three years and didn't take it.

The problems that have dogged them all season were again there to see in Greece: a lack of quality on the flanks and the absence of a top drawer finisher.

They must be priorities for the manager when he sits down to discuss his summer spending plans with the club's American owners. The signs are they'll respond well.

Benitez needs an E'too, a Villa or a Torres. I hear he fancies the first one of those but, even if he has the funds to prize E'too from Barcelona, is he sure he can cope with the African striker's all too frequent tantrums?

Simao Sabrosa, too, remains a Liverpool target. They'll offer Cisse to Benfica in part exchange when the deal goes through - if it does.

I still feel they need a left back as well and they'll hope that Agger's second-half jitters in Athens were nothing more than an aberration otherwise they'll be looking for a centre back.

Sadly, I can't leave the subject of Athens without reference to the abject performance of UEFA itself.

Though Liverpool may have a case to answer for their distribution process - 6,000 to club corporate commitments? - the blame for the ticket fiasco mostly lies at the door of the governing body.

Why can't they get it right? Why were so few allocated to Liverpool and Milan? The number of 'suits' I saw flashing their tickets at my hotel on the morning of the match made me want to throw up.

I won't remotely condone the violence but, to a degree, I understand it.

This guy should be shot.

The way we dimantaled their domestic champions is proof enough of what we can do. Liverpool just managed to stop us playing, even Kuyt was almost playing as a holding midfielder constantly pressing us.

We just had an off night, but in the end WE are the champions of Europe, so he can moan and cry all he wants but that's never going to change.

The tables were turned on Liverpool, and now they've got a bit of taste of their own medicinne, and with how they ROBBED us 2 years ago we are due another cup off their hands, and next time we meet I hope we KO them in the last minute after playing terrible all game by an Ambro header.

[redbabies]

who's this stupid mother f@cka' (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/devilsmiley.gif)

the source pls?

[kurtsimonw]

If I had my way we should be kicked out of every tournement, appeal and then be let in.

Then whenever we win it we piss EVERYBODY off. Other than seeing your team win the trophy, pissing everybody else off is what's so great about it.