More than two years after a proposed European Super League (ESL) shook the foundations of the football world, the ESL has found its way back to the forefront of the sport following a historic ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ). .
On Thursday, Europe’s highest court ruled that FIFA, the sport’s international governing body, and UEFA, the continent’s soccer governing body, had acted contrary to European competition law by blocking the separation plans of ESL.
The news was celebrated by Spanish football giant Real Madrid, who are leading the fight to get the new competition off the ground.
“Today, the Europe of freedoms has triumphed, just like football and its supporters,” said club president Florentino Pérez. “We face a great opportunity to improve European club football.”
The court’s decision resurrected the proposition that many thought was dead and long buried – much to the dismay of fans who powerfully protested the league in 2021. Read on to learn more about this controversial topic.
What is the European Super League?
The ESL is a seasonal football competition offered to club teams in Europe. It was proposed on April 18, 2021 by a group of 12 of Europe’s biggest and most famous teams from England, Italy and Spain, including Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus.
At the time, the proposal was a 20-team elite football tournament which would have seen places reserved for up to 15 of the founding clubs. It would have effectively replaced the Champions League, managed by UEFA, as Europe’s most prestigious current club competition.
In the Champions League, teams enter on merit, usually based on their place in the domestic leagues – and no place is guaranteed.
The formation of the new Super League has sparked a lot of discussion within European football. Hear what the football world, including fans, has to say about this decision.
But this plan failed almost instantly. The creation of the ESL drew widespread condemnation from UEFA and several national football federations, notably those of England, Italy and Spain.
UEFA and the governing bodies of these federationswarned that all clubs involved in the ESL would be barred from all other domestic, European and world football competitions, and noted that players from these clubs would also be banned from representing their national teams.
These threats, along with widespread fan anger, prompted nine of the original 12 teams to withdraw from the competition almost immediately, leaving only Madrid, Juventus and FC Barcelona – until Juventus withdrew earlier this year.
Just days after its proposal, the ESL announced that it suspend operations.
Why did the European Super League return?
Despite widespread protests against the ESL, some of the clubs involved claimed that UEFA had abused its dominant position in the European competition market. Currently, UEFA governs football in Europe, as well as some transcontinental and Asian countries. It is made up of 55 national member associations.
Bernd Reichart, whose sports development company A22 helped create the ESL, said the new league wanted to break up what he described as a competition monopoly managed by UEFA, which has organized pan-European competitions for almost 70 years.
The case of ESL clubs was heard in July 2022 by the ECJ. Judges from 15 of the EU’s 27 member states heard the proceedings over two days, with the majority of those governments backing UEFA.
SO, in January 2023a Madrid court upheld an earlier order ordering FIFA and UEFA not to follow through on their threats to punish teams and players participating in the project.
But in its ruling on Thursday, the CJEU ruled that FIFA and UEFA had abused their dominant position and violated EU law by banning clubs from joining the breakaway ESL – while crucially adding that the ruling did not necessarily mean that such a league should be approved.
“We have won the right to compete. UEFA’s monopoly is over. Football is free,” Reichart said in a statement after the ruling. “Clubs are now free from the threat of sanctions and free to determine their own future.”
What are the details of the verdict?
The court declared that the regulation and organization of sports competitions did not constitute a violation of European competition law and that sports federations could refuse market access to third parties, but only if this refusal was justified by real objectives.
Currently, “there is no framework for FIFA and UEFA rules ensuring that they are transparent, objective, non-discriminatory and proportional”, the court ruled.
The court’s ruling said the two bodies must “comply with competition rules and respect freedoms of movement”, adding that their rules on approval, control and sanctions constitute unjustified restrictions on the free provision of services.
How did the opponents react?
UEFA said the decision did not signify an approval or validation of the Super League.
“We will not try to stop them. They can create whatever they want. I hope they start their fantastic competition as soon as possible, with two clubs,” said UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin during of a press conference.
FIFA said it would analyze the decision with UEFA, other confederations and member associations before commenting further.
“With the greatest respect for the European Court of Justice, today’s judgment really does not change anything,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
“Historically, we host the best competitions in the world, and that will be the case in the future as well.”
Several top club teams, including Manchester United And Bayern Munichalso issued statements saying they remained committed to UEFA competitions as domestic leagues across Europe rejected the Super League.
The British government also said it was working on legislation to prevent English clubs from joining another breakaway competition.
But Reichart said the ESL was not a breakaway league and would be compatible with national league schedules.
What’s next for the European Super League?
Since the EJC’s decision, the A22 has revealed plans for three new competitions involving 64 teams, based on championship and knockout formats. But he did not provide details on when the launch was expected or how much support he had from specific clubs.
“The challenge is to work with sports clubs and others to determine whether the best competition in the world can be created,” Reichart said. “We believe this is possible and that is the goal of this initiative.”
A22 also announced plans to create a Women’s Super League with 32 teams playing in two different competitions. This tournament would also be based on a championship and knockout format.
The decision could also lead to more separatist proposals – or a competition similar to the Saudi-backed LIV Golf series, backed by any state, consortium or individual with enough money.
But as with the ESL, club support would be fundamental to any similar proposal, and there is little evidence of a widespread appetite to form such a split.
