A UEFA plan to limit the amount of clubs able to qualify for the Champions League has been set out in a Football Association report which details the possible end of the Premier League's top four race.

Moves to protect "elite European club revenue streams" are laid out in the FA report, which details the plans that European football's governing body have to expand their continental competitions.

The Premier League has long enjoyed a healthy tussle for the top four places in the division and Champions League qualification.

But such plans - which have long been pushed by Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli - would threaten the competitiveness of the top flight, giving little chance to anyone outside the so-called 'Big Six' of ever sitting at Europe's top table.

The new plans, which would come into force in 2024, state that the 32-team Champions League for the 2024/25 season would be chosen based on UEFA's domestic club rankings from the period between the 2020/21 and 2023/24 seasons - effectively making the tournament a closed shop.

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For clubs outside that bracket, entry to future Champions League tournaments would have to come through either winning the Premier League outright, or reaching the semi-finals of a revamped 32-team Europa League.

It is the belief of some clubs that past performance in the Champions League should be placed above domestic results when determining qualifiers for the tournament, with the likes of Roma and Ajax reaching the semi-finals of recent competitions only to miss out on it entirely in future years.

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Agnelli cited Roma as an example back in March when he questioned whether it was right for Atalanta to be in this year's competition, “without international history and thanks to just one great season.”

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If the plan were to be in place this season then such a move would come as blow to the likes of Leicester, Wolves and Sheffield United, who have been battling it out with the more established sides such as Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham for a spot in the top four.

There are also plans for the Europa League to follow a similar pattern from 2024, with new teams able to qualify via league position or finishing in the last four of the new UEFA Conference League.

"The FA continues to work with all stakeholders to reach an acceptable position," the report adds.