UEFA agrees to drop August friendlies

Europe`s leading soccer clubs hailed a `major breakthrough` on Tuesday after agreeing with UEFA to drop the unpopular August date for international friendlies. European Clubs Association (ECA) chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, in an address to the body`s general assembly in Warsaw, said an agreement had been reached with the European governing body over scrapping the date.

However the German warned that world body FIFA had yet to sanction the move.
FIFA itself said it was surprised by recent developments at the ECA, saying the association had hindered progress on the international calendar because its members had declined to attend FIFA committee meetings.

ECA said that it and UEFA had agreed that the international calendar would be made up of nine double-headers covering a two-year period, with no single friendlies.
In a new Memorandum of Understanding between UEFA and the clubs, they agreed that the two matches of the double date for friendlies should be played on the same continent.
The final tournaments of all confederations would end in mid-July in future, and players would not be expected to play in more than one international tournament a year.

The ECA, comprising Europe`s top 201 clubs, also reached agreement over insurance payments for players injured while on international duty, starting at Euro 2012.
It agreed an increase in benefits from UEFA for clubs whose players were involved in Euro 2012 and Euro 2016, with the increases to be announced at the UEFA Congress in Istanbul next month.

With so many more African players now with European clubs, it was agreed that the Africa Cup of Nations should start as early as possible in January, when it was staged.

In a statement, world soccer`s governing body replied: "FIFA is surprised by recent comments made by ECA stating that they are not satisfied with their discussions with football`s world governing body regarding topics of interest to the European clubs, including the international match calendar.

It said a meeting would be held at FIFA`s Zurich headquarters on March 5, involving representatives of continental confederations, national associations, clubs and players to discuss the international match calendar. No decision relating to club football would be taken without the consent of the clubs, both sides agreed.