I've always wondered what will happen if a team decides not to participate in a particular tournament. However, I've never really put a deep thought into it until Newcastle put four goals past Burnley.
My curious search for answers wasn't really fruitful enough. I read about some teams that were banned/exempted from European competition but it was mostly on financial grounds. AC Milan not participating in any European competition in the 2019/2020 season is a recent occurrence.
But, is it possible for a team to opt out of a tournament simply because they feel it's not worth it?
Bradford City qualified for the Carling Cup final in 2013 to play Michael Laudrup's Swansea. The winner would go to represent England in the Europa League. Before the final was played, then Bradford City co-chairman Mark Lawn clearly said they wouldn't participate in the European tournament even if they qualify for it by beating Swansea in the Carling Cup final.
His reason was that the club doesn't have the financial capability to bankroll a tournament that doesn't turn profitable until they make it to the group stage. With about two or three qualifying stages to navigate before the group stage, he believed his team won't make it to the group stage. So, the money that would've been spent on travelling across Europe for qualifiers would be used to help the team.
Once again, his reason was purely financial and somewhat understandable because they were a fourth tier club as at then. Well, they were comprehensively beaten by Swansea. So, this scenario never played out.
Now, all this epistles is targeted at one thing: Can Man United out of the Europa Conference League?
What I gathered was that a team has to apply for a Uefa license to participate in European tournaments. If a team wants to opt out, all he has to do is to not apply for the Uefa license for that year. But I'm thinking, is it that simple? What are the possible ramifications/punishments for shunning the annoying Conference League?
For one, the league coefficient suffers. Seven teams are expected to qualify for Europe from England. So, England's coefficient score will be divided by 7. If only six turned up, that's the FA's problem as it limits the country's opportunities in the future.
However, it still shouldn't be that simple. Despite all the wobbles of the past years, Man United still draws huge crowds and plenty of revenues. Man United participating in the Conference League will serve as a justification and an advert for the much maligned competition.
So will UEFA allow Man United to opt out of the Conference League when their participation will help propel it?
Will the FA allow a floundering but pompous Man United put the country in jeopardy because of their self pride?
I did not bother to check the prize money for the Europa Conference League but I'm sure it won't cover the running costs for an expensively assembled Man United team playing in that tournament. Is that enough ground to reject the tournament?
One thing is glaring: Man United fans out there will not want to watch the team meandering with teams in the third tier competition. It's punishing enough to watch the Europa League, watching the Conference League will be a whole new level of low.
So, what will happen if Man United opt out of the Europa Conference League?
