UEFA president considers salary caps for European clubs

UEFA could impose a North American-style salary cap on Europe's top football clubs in an attempt to control spending and eradicate the stockpiling of players, the body's president, Aleksander Ceferin, said.

Teams competing in the Champions League and Europa League must already comply with UEFA's Financial Fair Play regulations, which ask clubs to meet the break-even mark over a finite period of time.

The spirit of FFP is aimed at curbing spending outside of one's means, but financial power still rests with Europe's elite.

"In (the) future, we will have to take into serious consideration the possibility of limiting clubs' budgets for players' wages," Ceferin told Slovenian magazine Mladina, courtesy of ESPN FC. "If we succeed, it will, in my opinion, be an historic change."

Wages now make up 62 percent of the net costs of European clubs, according to a UEFA-commissioned report released in January. Salaries in general have grown at an average rate of 10.3 percent over the past 20 years.

A salary cap would reduce the concentration of talent within a select range of teams and reduce player hoarding.

"With the introduction of salary caps, clubs should think more about what (players) are worth," Ceferin added.

This kind of rule change would still require the approval of the European Club Association, which counts 220 clubs from 53 countries, including heavyweights Real Madrid and Manchester United, among its ranks.