Javier Tebas, the President of Spain’s top football league La Liga, has urged UEFA’s Congress not to approve the appointment of Qatari Nasser Al-Khelaifi to the body’s Executive Committee.
Al-Khelaifi, who is chairman of Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (PSG) and chief executive of the Qatari television firm BeIN Media, was chosen to sit on the Committee last month as a representative of the European Club Association (ECA).
This is despite the fact that PSG’s finances are currently being investigated by UEFA.
Al-Khelaifi’s appointment is set to be ratified by UEFA’s Congress in Rome on Thursday (February 7), at which point it will become official.
But Tebas, who has previously described PSG’s operating methods as “financial doping”, said the appointment would be unsuitable considering the circumstances.
His appointment “must be rejected as it violates all reasonable rules of governance”, Tebas said.
He added: “Not only because of the financial fair play file, also because he is President of BeIN Sports, one of the main UEFA broadcast rights buyers.”
Nasser Al-Khelaifi’s firm BeIN Sports holds exclusive television rights in the Middle East for all of Europe’s top football leagues ©Getty ImagesBeIN Media currently holds exclusive television rights in the Middle East for football’s major European leagues and continental competitions such as the Champions League.
On top of the investigation into his club, Al-Khelaifi himself has also previously been probed for alleged financial misconduct.
In 2017 he was questioned by Swiss authorities in relation to a bribery investigation linked to BeIN Sports’ deal with FIFA for World Cup rights in 2026 and 2030.
He has always denied wrongdoing.
Tomorrow, ahead of the Congress, UEFA’s Executive Committee will meet at Rome’s Roma Cavalieri Hotel.
A Memorandum of Understanding between UEFA and the ECA is among the items on the agenda.
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