Champions League dreams under threat as Danish lockout looms
By Philip O'Connor
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - A labour dispute between the Danish League and the country's professional players leaves FC Copenhagen facing the prospect of taking on the might of Bayer Leverkusen in a Champions League qualifier with a squad of youth team players.
If the league cannot agree on a new collective bargaining agreement by midnight on Thursday, players who are union members will be locked out from Aug. 19, when FC Copenhagen are due to take on Leverkusen, with Aalborg meeting Apoel Nicosia in the continental competition the following day.
"No one wants to play football more than us, that goes without saying. But all players stand together because our collective bargaining agreement is so important," Aalborg player Patrick Kristensen told Reuters.
With huge finiancial benefits for clubs qualifying for the group stages of the Champions League, FC Copenhagen and Danish league champions Aalborg are anxiously awaiting the results of negotiations to see which players will be available.
"Missing the Champions League is a situation no one wants to be in but we have to look at the broader picture," said Kristensen, who has spent his entire career with Aalborg.
"I understand the frustrations of the fans," the 27-year-old continued. "Football is a game of emotions and of course they are affected by this. But I hope the fans understand that we are fighting for decent conditions for all. After all, most players in Denmark have average incomes."
The dispute between the league and the union centres on the collective bargaining agreement that governs relationships between players and clubs.
The previous agreement had been in force for 10 years but was cancelled in July of 2014 by the Danish League, who said it had resulted in too many expensive legal challenges and court cases and was too open to interpretation.
The union wants any new agreement to limit the amount of time spent training and playing matches, as well as improved conditions for part-time players in the lower divisions.
The Danish Football Association (DBU) has said that in the event of a strike or lockout, it will back the Danish League and that players locked out by the clubs will not be considered for selection to the national team.
FC Copenhagen coach Stale Solbakken said that he respects the players' stance but that an agreement must be reached.
"I'm a socialist, I respect solidarity and I respect that the players stand together," Solbakken, who is understood to have several non-union players in his squad, told reporters in Copenhagen.
"But sometimes things can have consequences that weren't foreseen when they were entered into. This time the consequences of a conflict extend far, far into the future for Danish club football, for the national team and for the players.
"We need to get a solution or postpone the dispute by the time of the European matches."
(Reporting By Philip O'Connor in Stockholm, editing by Pritha Sarkar)