UEFA coefficients: "French clubs will have to be good to keep fifth place" (V. Labrune)

"Our position is secured for 2024-25, but it is fragile. The dice are rolling. Every year, it's up for grabs. Next season (2023-24), our clubs will have to be good to keep this fifth place in 2025-26. But with six or seven clubs, it's easier to stay in the top five. With only five teams, they would have had to go very far. That left little room for uncertainty," said Vincent Labrune, president of the Ligue de Football Professionnel, to the French sports daily L'Équipe on 12/05/2023.

The former Olympique de Marseille president spoke out the day after AZ Alkmaar (Eredivisie) lost 1-2 to West Ham FC (Premier League) in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final, a result that allows France to retain its fifth place in the UEFA coefficient rankings at the end of the 2022-23 season and thus have three clubs directly qualified for the league phase when the new Champions League format comes into force in 2024-25, in addition to another club in the third preliminary round.

"We think that we will be able to arrive at around €200m per year (compared to around €80m over the 2018-2024…