BRUSSELS, Feb 12 (Reuters) - UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin opposed the idea of hosting domestic matches abroad in a speech at the European body's 50th Congress on Thursday, saying European leagues should not risk eroding their supporters' loyalty for short-term goals.
Ceferin, speaking a day after UEFA reached a settlement with Real Madrid that ended their legal feud over the ill-fated European Super League, also stressed the need for European soccer to retain a single, open pyramid.
A LaLiga match between Villarreal and Barcelona was scheduled to take place in the United States, and a Serie A game between AC Milan and Como was set to be held in Australia, before their respective league authorities cancelled the plans last year.
Ceferin advised clubs against trading "roots for reach".
"Domestic leagues draw their strength from their territory, their traditions and match-going fans. Exporting domestic matches abroad might serve short-term interests but it weakens connection and erodes loyalty," the Slovenian lawyer and soccer administrator said.
"How do you build identity if you remove the game from its home... how do you sustain local passion if you trade it away?"
Ceferin, who has been the UEFA president since 2016, said European soccer "will never be closed," in an apparent reference to the proposed European Super League, which had originally proposed a model that guaranteed the participation of some of the most popular clubs.
"It is for all. And what belongs to everyone is stronger than any single force... we chose unity over fragmentation. We chose stewardship over improvisation," he said.
"This season alone, more than 400 million euros ($475 million) will be redistributed to the clubs outside of the (Champions League's) league phase. And out of that, 308 million will go to clubs that don't participate in European competitions at all. Would this exist in a system driven only by profit? I am sure the answer is clear."
FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who also spoke at the UEFA Congress, congratulated the European soccer body and Real for resolving their legal dispute.
"Because football wins when we unite," Infantino said.
FIFPRO EUROPE PRESIDENT ELECTED TO UEFA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
The UEFA Congress later voted to include David Terrier, the president of FIFPRO Europe, in the European governing body's executive committee with full voting rights.
Players' union FIFPRO called Terrier's inclusion a "landmark development".
"For the first time, players are formally represented at the highest level of decision-making in European football... players are no longer outside the room. Their position is now part of a formal process," Terrier told FIFPRO's official website.
($1 = 0.8420 euros)
(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in BengaluruEditing by Toby Davis)
