News
20DEC
Press lunch with Thomas Grimm: to be continued!

On Friday, December 20, in the House of Football a meeting was held, at which the Ukrainian Premier League President talked to journalists in an informal setting

A press lunch was held in the House of Football (Laboratornyi lane, 7-A.). In addition to Thomas Grimm, the UPL Directorate representatives took part in it.

After the introductory remarks by Thomas Grimm, the present reporters had the opportunity to ask any questions on various topics. During the discussion, the UPL President answered the following questions:

Regarding of his future: - On April 6, 2020, my term of office as the UPL President will expire. I will not submit my candidacy for re-election, that is, in April next year, the Ukrainian Premier League will receive a new president.

On the single television and commercial pool: - UPL is in a constant negotiation process with five clubs that refused to comply with the decision of the General Meeting and entered into contracts with another customer. I hope that in the coming months we will be able to find a compromise that is acceptable to all. I emphasize once again: the centralization of television and commercial rights is the foundation without which the clubs of Ukraine will not be able to take the path of self-sufficiency.

About the current season in the Favbet League: - Between the first and second places the gap is 14 points, which is not a positive signal. On the other hand, do not forget that in some European leagues there is also a big point difference between the leader and other teams: for example, in England Liverpool is 10 points ahead of Leicester City and 14 points ahead of Manchester City, although in the past years there wasn’t such a gap in the Premier League. So, it is temporary. I believe that this is a temporary phenomenon in Ukraine too.

About 2019 in the Ukrainian football: - The year was twofold. On the one hand, the national teams were very pleased - first of all, the U20 team that became the world champion, and the national team, which reached the final stage of the European Championship. On the other hand, only one team will represent Ukraine in European competitions in spring , which, among other things, negatively affected our positions in the UEFA ranking table.

About referees and the VAR system in the Favbet League: - It’s difficult for me to talk about referees, since this is the prerogative of the competent authorities. Concerning the VAR: I am convinced that this is positive, and I am glad that starting from the spring two matches of the round will be held under the supervision of VAR, but I realize that this can help the referee, not replace him, and it won’t take all problems.

At the end of the press lunch, Thomas Grimm summarized the topics discussed and confirmed that the meetings of the representatives of the UPL management with journalists would be held regularly.

Photo taken by the UPL press office.