By David Owen
May 16 – The head of the UEFA body probing whether Europe’s clubs are complying with financial fair play has died, just as the ambitious programme to restore discipline to football club finances is starting to bite. Jean-Luc Dehaene, 73, a former Belgian Prime Minister and, as such, a prominent figure in European politics, was head of the investigatory chamber of UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body (CFCB).
His death comes in a week when UEFA was said to be still locked in negotiations on possible sanctions on up to nine clubs.
Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain, the newly-crowned English and French league champions, both bankrolled by Middle East investors, are among those who are reported to have broken the rules as a result of their relentless quest to become permanent members of European football’s affluent elite.
Those among the nine who have accepted so-called “settlements” were originally due to be named by Europe’s governing body at the end of last week.
Among many tributes, José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, said: “Jean-Luc Dehaene will rightly be remembered as a man of unification, both for Belgium in his remarkable time as Prime Minister for seven years, and in his outstanding contribution to a stronger and united Europe.
“His role as a mediator shone through in all of his work…
“The whole European family has lost a man of inspiration, leadership and commitment.”
On announcing Dehaene’s UEFA appointment to the then Club Financial Control Panel nearly five years ago, Michel Platini, UEFA President, said: “The huge task that confronts us today in European football with regards to financial fair play requires an equally large personality to tackle it.
“I am therefore particularly happy to see that for this challenge we are able to attract a person with the quality and background of Mr. Dehaene.
“As the first chairman of the Club Financial Control Panel, he will set the standard in this area and in so doing will make history. It was crucial to have this new role handled by a man of his capacity and stature.”
Dehaene himself said at the time: “The rule of financial fair play is aimed at ensuring the healthy, lasting viability of clubs…
“By agreeing to chair the Club Financial Control Panel, I hope to be able to help achieve this ambitious objective, which is vital to the future of European football.”
We will now have to see how smoothly financial fair play is able to press on without its history-making midfield general. Certainly, he will be a hard man for Platini and his colleagues to replace long-term though it is understood work is already virtually complete over the initial raft of sanctions.
Paying tribute to Dehaene, who began working with Uefa almost five years ago, Platini said: “Mr Dehaene was a great man. He was a statesman and a man of conviction. Through his love of football, he accepted to play a key role in the setting up of Financial Fair Play, becoming the first chairman of the Club Financial Control Panel and then chief investigator of the Uefa Club Financial Control Body investigatory chamber – a mission which was close to his heart, and one to which he was fully committed.”
“We are all going to miss his passion, simplicity, irreproachable professionalism and great sense of duty. European football wishes to convey its deepest sympathy to his family and friends.”
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