AUGUST 15, 2008

Now Superleague gets serious

Superleague Formula has not been taken very seriously thus far, with no-one really understanding where the funding will come from for teams to run in the colours of the various soccer clubs that have announced their involvement. With the news that Liverpool FC has joined the series, the 17th club to do so, it must now be taken seriously.

There are now three big names from the UK: Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Rangers. Others teams to be involved are AC Milan, AS Roma, FC Porto, PSV Eindhoven, Borussia Dortmund, RSC Anderlecht, Galatasaray, plus Brazil's Flamengo and Corinthians. The cars, which will be run in the colours of the clubs, will take part in a six-round series this autumn in cars built for the championship by Panoz and powered by engines prepared by Menard.

Superleague Formula President and CEO Alex Andreu believes the addition of Liverpool will significantly boost the profile of the new championship.

"As a global sports brand, Liverpool is one of the biggest names in the world," he says. "Our dream for our championship is now becoming a reality - our first race is only a matter of weeks away and all the hard work of our team at Superleague Formula is paying off.

The six events will take place at Donington Park, Nurburgring, Zolder, Estoril, Vallelunga and Jerez.

The funding of the series remains unclear but if Liverpool is willing to sign up there must be some money in it.