FA Cup winners may get Champions League place

UEFA have confirmed they will consider awarding a place in the Champions League to the winners of the FA Cup from 2009.

Under sweeping changes suggested for Europe’s elite club competition, the proposal – mooted at UEFA’s European club forum – could see the winner of each country’s main knockout tournament included in a new end-of-season play-off system or even granted an automatic Champions League berth.

William Gaillard, UEFA’s communications director, told the Guardian: “A number of clubs have expressed an interest in this situation.

“We are not against it in principle and if this is the view of the majority there is no reason why we shouldn’t do it. The clubs that we have heard from have responded quite favourably.”

Gaillard said that although discussions had so far been informal, interest had been strongest from “a very large German club, a Spanish club and a very large Scottish club”, who the Guardian claims are Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Rangers respectively.

Gaillard said the idea would be put to UEFA’s new strategic committee in June, which in turn would make direct recommendations to the executive committee.