By Andrew Warshaw
February 12 – The European Club Association, comprising more than 200 clubs across the Continent, will hold its annual general assembly next month without any replacement for former Barcelona president Sandro Rosell, one of the organisation’s most influential figures.
As expected, an ECA board meeting this week deferred a decision on Rosell’s replacement both as ECA second vice-chairman and on UEFA’s Professional Football Strategy Council (PFSC).
Ironically this year’s general assembly takes place in Rosell’s own Barcelona backyard where he was to have played a key hosting role until resigning last month under the weight of negative publicity over Brazilian superstar Neymar’s contentious transfer from Santos to Barcelona last summer.
Whether out of respect for Rosell or simply to buy themselves more time, or a combination of the two, the ECA will now conduct its business in Barcelona without a successor for the charismatic Rosell, a post that is now expected to remain vacant until mid-April at the earliest.
Rosell had been a member of the ECA executive board since September 2010, headed ECA’s marketing division and played a key role in dealings with FIFA and UEFA. ECA chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge will take on his PFSC role on a temporary basis alongside Ivan Gazidis (Arsenal), Umberto Gandini (Milan) and Evgeni Giner (CSKA Moscow) until a permanent replacement is named.
An ECA statement said: “The Executive Board deeply regrets the circumstances under which Sandro Rosell left FC Barcelona and would like to thank him for his commitment and invaluable input.”
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