Why Does Luxembourg Still Not Have A Professional Football League?

While the entire football world is looking at the Super League dispute and how it could eventually shape the future organization of football in Europe, Luxembourg football clubs still haven’t decided on having a professional football league.

Even with a very high number of football club licensees per capita¹, and recognizable sporting achievements over the past few years, the stakeholders do not seem to be ready (yet) to have a fully professional league and make profits from a commercial exploitation.

In fact, many talented players end up leaving the country at a very young age in order to have a shot at a successful career abroad. Such decision is most likely driven by the dream of eventually joining famous foreign clubs and play at an international level, but it is also the result of a non-existing professional league providing for an appropriate compensation which would potentially convince these players to stay. As a consequence, Luxembourg’s highest football league, the ‘BGL-League’² composed of 16 teams is left to amateurism, despite its pool of talented young players and the various financial and social advantages the country has to offer to them (and their families).

What exactly is holding the Luxembourg Football Federation (FLF) back from establishing a professional football league? This article examines the issues, looking at

• The existing legal framework of Luxembourg football
• The need for institutional transformation and commercial processes
• Developing marketing strategies and raising political interest
• Capitalising on sporting momentum