Nadal slams UEFA over exclusion
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Tennis world No 1 and Real Mallorca shareholder Rafa Nadal has hit out at governing body UEFA for excluding the financially-troubled La Liga club from European competition this season.
Mallorca finished fifth in the league last campaign and qualified for the Europa League, but UEFA ruled last week the Balearic Islands club, which is in administration, had not fulfilled the admission criteria.
UEFA did not publish the reasons behind the decision, which Mallorca has appealed.
"I am like all Mallorca fans," Nadal, who was born on the island, told IB3 TV.
"It's a hell of a blow because playing in Europe fills you with excitement and the players have earned it," the Wimbledon and French Open champion said.
"I don't know the reasons behind the exclusion, but if it is for economic reasons there would not be any European competition at all because everyone is in the same situation."
Mallorca said in May it had applied to go into voluntary administration in an effort to sort out its finances.
Like many Spanish clubs, it has been slipping ever further into debt due to surging wage and transfer costs. A recent University of Barcelona study indicated it had debts of about 85 million euros ($110 million).
Nadal became a shareholder in the club this month and his uncle, former soccer professional Miguel Angel Nadal, is assistant to new coach Michael Laudrup.
Mallorca noted on its website that Barcelona had admitted earlier on Tuesday to making a loss of almost 80 million euros last season and its gross debt was more than half a billion euros.
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