UEFA has made clear a statement which implied that teams from abandoned leagues would need to pre-qualify for next season’s Champions League.
European football’s governing body had issued confusing comments which implied that teams such as Paris Saint-Germain would need to enter the competition in the first qualifying round.
PSG, who remain in this season’s Champions League, were awarded the Ligue 1 title as the season was cancelled last month.
But UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin appeared to warn that clubs from abandoned leagues – such as in France, Holland and Belgium – would need to enter European competition at the preliminary stages.
UEFA have now clarified their comments, confirming that only teams in the positions normally needing to pre-qualify will need to be ready to compete in the preliminary stages.
They wrote in a statement on Twitter : “With regard to the way some quotes in an interview with beIN have been reported, UEFA wishes to make clear that President Čeferin said that clubs from leagues which were abandoned in this season would still need to be ready to play qualification rounds for next season according to the current access list.
“He did not mention or hint at any change to the UEFA club competitions access list.”
In the interview with beIN Sports on Friday, Ceferin also described the decision to end the Ligue 1 season as “premature”.
“For us, the important thing is that we know who is the Champion, who is second, who is third, and fourth,” he said.
“My personal opinion is that if you cancel a season super early it’s not an ideal thing because things can improve a lot and everybody can play except a few leagues.
“But again, if it’s the decision of the government, what can the clubs do? Or the league? They cannot do anything.
“But for me the decision was premature. But it doesn’t affect UEFA, so it’s their decision.”
