UEFA Organizations UEFA is the governing body of European football (soccer). It represents 55 national football associations, runs nation and club competitions and controls prize money, media rights and regulations. Its goals are to promote football in a spirit of unity, solidarity, peace, understanding and fair play, without any discrimination on the basis of politics, race, religion or gender. It is a representative democracy and works collaboratively with its member associations for the progress of European football. UEFA Executive Committee The UEFA Executive Committee is the supreme decision-making body of European football. It comprises the UEFA President and 16 other members, including at least one female, elected by a UEFA Congress, as well as two members elected by the European Club Association (ECA) and one member elected by European Leagues, ratified by the Congress. The Executive Committee is responsible for making decisions on behalf of UEFA and the member associations, with its functions focused on governance, integrity and accountability. These include double signature systems, appropriate risk management programmes, tender processes and proper budgeting. Among the current members of the Executive Committee is Nasser Al-Khelaifi, chairman of Paris Saint-Germain and president of Qatar-based beIN Sports. He was elected Wednesday to represent the ECA on UEFA’s main policy-making panel. UEFA Board of Directors The UEFA Board of Directors is the highest decision-making body within the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). Its functions are to ensure the implementation of UEFA's Constitution and Rules. In addition, the Board of Directors also has the responsibility to set a number of strategic objectives for the future. These objectives reflect UEFA's core values of fair play, ethics and good governance as well as the needs of football in Europe. The UEFA Board of Directors meets on a regular basis, usually once a year. It also conducts biannual meetings of its Technical Subcommittee and Football Advisory Panel to discuss potential Law changes and to receive their expert opinion before determining the next steps in their implementation. UEFA Parliament The European Parliament is the political chamber of the European Union (EU). It is headquartered in Strasbourg, France, and has administrative offices in Brussels, Belgium. The Parliament is divided into 20 committees, each handling a specific policy area. MEPs are elected by citizens of EU member states. The majority of MEPs sit in transnational groups, which represent various political parties from their home countries. During the year, the Parliament meets for about 12 one-week plenary sessions in Strasbourg and sometimes in Brussels. It also has a number of subcommittees. The Parliament aims to promote the European Union's remit and its policies through legislative action, debate and the approval of resolutions. It can be contacted through a number of methods, including by mail or online. The most popular is to send a petition, which can be submitted by any person who is either a citizen of an EU country or is resident in one. It can be about any topic that falls under the remit of the Parliament. UEFA Committees UEFA's committees are responsible for a range of activities. They discuss issues relating to UEFA's competitions, including the Champions League and the Europa League, and draw up recommendations for possible modifications to the rules and regulations. The UEFA Club Competitions Committee also makes recommendations on the distribution of revenues generated by club competitions and submits advice to the UEFA Executive Committee. It was reported that UEFA's Club Competitions Committee has decided to scrap the away goals rule in a move that may drastically alter knock-out European fixtures. The move comes as many UEFA officials feel the current rules are outdated. One of the key decisions will see domestic champions and runner-ups from top European footballing countries take up four extra places in the Champions League main draw. However, some of those clubs are unhappy at the idea. The ECA has long been a supporter of a change, but is now calling for an overhaul that would give more of the extra spots to teams outside the elite. Eintracht Frankfurt CEO Axel Hellmann said this week that a "significant proportion" of the additional revenue from the new Champions League format should go to domestic league champions.