WARSAW: The new ECA Board met for the first time in Warsaw, Poland, for the ECA membership cycle 2023-27, following the first step in major internal governance reforms passed at the General Assembly in Budapest, the recent Board elections at the General Assembly in Berlin, and the renewal of ECA’s MoU with UEFA (to complement the FIFA MoU renewal earlier in the year) as the sole, independent body for football clubs at European level.
Chaired by Nasser Al Khelaifi, the Board took a number of decisions in respect of the new membership cycle to set ECA on the path for further expansion and reform.
These included appointing an ECA Executive Committee with delegated authority from the Board to serve as a more agile decision-making body for the association, the appointment to the Board of four female ED&I Champions, as a step to further advancing ECA’s Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (ED&I) agenda, and approval to move forward with a full strategic review of ECA.
The Board was updated on the main findings from a new Members Insights Survey which will help drive ECA’s growth strategy towards cultivating greater interaction with existing and new members, supported by an extensive account management and member engagement scale-up for the new cycle.
On UEFA club competitions, the Board received an update on the men’s post-24 distribution model, following the signing of the MoU with UEFA, as well as the continuing collaboration with UEFA to review the UEFA Women’s club competition landscape post-2025.
In his opening remarks ECA Chairman, Nasser Al Khelaifi, said: "Today marks the first full meeting of the new ECA Board, and the start of our exciting and ambitious 2023-2027 cycle. Through our commitment to our members, our expanded Board will continue to drive the growth of European football for clubs of all sizes, hand-in-hand with all stakeholders - including with our valued partners UEFA, FIFA, Leagues, players and fans - as the sole representative body of European clubs in Europe and worldwide.
"We have opened up our membership even further, to represent and give a voice to clubs across Europe, not only who play in European competitions. We are also expanding our Management Team, our Membership Department and our important services to clubs. We should be very excited about this next phase in the evolution of ECA."
New Executive Committee
The new 12-person ECA Executive Committee is composed of the ECA Chairman and five Vice Chairs plus six members that were appointed today by the Board. The Executive Committee will allow for a more modern, streamlined and agile decision-making process, meeting on a regular basis and reporting to the full Board.
The Executive Committee approved for the 2023-27 membership cycle
• Nasser Al Khelaifi (Chairman) - Paris Saint-Germain
• Jan-Christian Dreesen (Vice Chair) - FC Bayern München
• Peter Lawwell (Vice Chair) - Celtic FC
• Dariusz Mioduski (Vice Chair) - Legia Warszawa
• Aki Riihilahti (Vice Chair) - HJK Helsinki
• Martina Pavlová (Vice Chair) - AC Sparta Praha
• Míguel Ángel Gil Marin - Club Atlético de Madrid
• Dan Friedkin - AS Roma
• Vinai Venkatesham - Arsenal FC
• Dennis Te Kloese - Feyenoord
• Ali Y Koç - Fenerbahçe SK
• Niclas Carlnén - Malmö FF
ED&I Champions
Supporting ECA’s continued efforts in the area of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, ECA set a minimum of 20% and a target of 30 percent for female representation in ECA internal bodies, in addition, four ED&I Champions were appointed to the Board today.
The four ED&I Champions are:
• Valentina de Laurentiis - SSC Napoli
• Aleksandra Milošević - FK Crvena Zvezda
• Vlatka Peras - GNK Dinamo Zagreb
• Azra Numanović - FK Sarajevo
The Board also approved a new position of Special Envoy to the ECA Chairman, to assist the Chairman and the Board, confirming the appointment of Axel Hellmann the CEO of Eintracht Frankfurt. The Special Envoy’s objective will be to assist ECA in further membership reform, increasing inclusivity and representing more clubs, with a focus on clubs not participating in international competitions.
