Platini cup winners plan rejected

LONDON, England -- UEFA president Michel Platini has conceded defeat on his controversial plan which would have seen winners of national cup competitions qualify for the Champions League.

Platini is understood to have agreed to drop the proposal in return for securing a deal where from 2009 six spots in the group stage are reserved for league champions in the bottom 40 countries in Europe.

UEFA's strategy council, made up of representatives from UEFA, the leagues, the clubs and the players, agreed to the compromise which will now go to UEFA's executive committee on December 1 for a final decision.

Under the deal, the leading three clubs in the English Premier League and other leading leagues will gain direct entry into the group stages. Currently the third and fourth placed sides enter at the final qualifying round stage.

But the fourth-placed sides will have to play an extra qualifying round. The champions of Europe's leading 12 countries will also be guaranteed a place in the group phase.

The six group places reserved for the champions of the 40 lowest leagues among UEFA's 53 member associations will be decided by three qualifying rounds.

A spin-off of Monday's decision is that a new organization for clubs is likely to be formed that is completely separate from G14, the group of 18 clubs from among Europe's elite, which is expected to be disbanded.

Platini's original plan had been opposed by the G14, with clubs including Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal, saying any change would devalue the reputation of the Champions League. E-mail to a friend