UEFA president expects to see FFP regulations relaxed

UEFA is approaching the time where they'll be announcing their second set of FFP sanctions, which should lead to talk about whether or not the regulations are working as the governing body intended. UEFA president Michel Platini had some quotes on Monday which suggest that many clubs aren't thrilled with the current system, however, and that changes will likely be coming in June:

"I think the regulations that have been made are fine, but FFP was voted in by the clubs. The French press have questioned it since Roman Abramovich at Chelsea can buy players while in France they cannot. Today in France they want another system, but if Qatar [owners of Paris Saint-Germain] had bought AC Milan they would want stricter enforcement. As it is, the Italians also say they want a lighter FFP."

"I understand that we are in a world of false bottoms, but we say this openly. I think we’ll lighten things up. This will be for the Uefa Executive Committee to decide. You’ll know the outcome at the end of June."

Many didn't understand why the larger clubs in Europe were willing to vote in favor of the regulations initially, but after seeing FFP in action, it should now be obvious to everyone that it does nothing but keep the traditional powerhouses in a position to outspend everyone else. It's probably not all that surprising, then, that ownership of some of the clubs being held back aren't all that fond of the regulations.

Relaxed FFP regulations will probably both good and bad for Chelsea. In the short term, the Blues have massive income as well as an owner that's never been unwilling to spend, which would make less regulation exciting. In the long term, however, stricter regulation would probably ensure that Chelsea are locked into Europe's elite, as their revenues have increased dramatically in the past decade, and the Blues are more than capable of living within their means now.

That said, I've always thought FFP was a stupid idea to begin with, and would be thrilled to see it launched to the moon. If UEFA wants to improve both the competition and the financial health of the game, limiting what clubs can spend is not the best way to go. Work on distributing the massive amounts of television money being poured into the sport more evenly, and there won't be as many clubs bankrupting themselves because they can't keep up with the elite. That might make clubs like Barcelona or Real Madrid upset, but as far as I'm concerned, that's a sign of a good idea.