Premier League: executives from 'Big Six' teams step down from PL committees

Executives from Premier League sides Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal have stepped down from their positions in PL committees. This comes after the aforementioned five clubs and Tottenham Hotspur took part in the formation of the now-defunct European Super League. Tottenham have no representatives on any committee so no resignations were forthcoming. However, this is the latest in the fall-out from the failed Super League launch. Manchester United executive vice chairman Ed Woodward, Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck, Arsenal CEO Vinai Venkatesham, Manchester City CEO Ferran Soriano and Liverpool chairman Tom Werner are now no longer on any PL committee.

The committees serve as a platform for clubs to voice their say on various matters. Chelsea chairman Buck was on the audit and remuneration committee. Incidentally, he also helped lead the search for then-PL chief executive Richard Scudamore’s replacement.

Soriano and Venkatesham were part of the Club Strategic Advisory Group. Woodward and Werner sat on the Club Broadcast Advisory Group.

Current PL chief executive Richard Masters asked the members to resign from their positions. The clubs acted in bad faith in conspiring to make a new tournament without other teams’ permission.

What next for Premier League Big Six?

The request to resign is a punishment for the individuals and not the clubs they represent. However, there have been calls for sanctions to be imposed on the Big Six.

Among the punishments being mooted are hefty fines or even points being docked from the current or next campaign. That being said, there is little consensus on the next course of action.

There is also an argument that punishing them now makes no sense. This is because the Super League bubble fell apart almost as soon as it formed.

However, it seems unlikely that merely asking for the resignation of these members will be the end of the punishments.

As things stand, it is Manchester City who will end the current Premier League season as champions. Defending champions Liverpool sit in sixth, four points behind fourth-placed Chelsea. Manchester United sit in second whereas 2016 champions Leicester City are currently third.

Two current Premier League sides are in the semi-finals of the Champions League. Chelsea are 1-1 on aggregate with Real Madrid after the first leg. Manchester City, on the other hand, lead Paris Saint-Germain 2-1.