FIFA and UEFA blocking the creation of the European Super League (ESL) was contrary to EU law, according to the European Court of Justice.
It was back in 2021 that 12 of Europe’s top clubs had launched the creation of a new ‘Super League’ which would be governed by the teams and would replace their participation in the Champions League.
Milan, Juventus and Inter were all involved from Italy as were Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid from Spain. Premier League sides Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Spurs were the other six.
However, they nearly all pulled out within 48 hours with the exception of Real, Barca and Juve, because UEFA came down hard on the idea and threatened a variety of different punishments.
The idea of a relaunch has been constantly mentioned, and today UEFA’s rules demanding prior approval for Super League have been deemed unlawful by the European Court of Justice in what is a big blow for UEFA and FIFA.
A statement from the European Court of Justice reads: “There is no framework for the FIFA and UEFA rules ensuring that they are transparent, objective, non-discriminatory and proportionate.
“Similarly, the rules giving FIFA and UEFA exclusive control over the commercial exploitation of the rights related to those competitions are such as to restrict competition, given their importance for the media, consumers and television viewers in the European Union.”
In the weeks that follow, we will know if the Champions League will ever be the same again given that a Super League relaunch could not in theory now be blocked, or whether the football pyramid is shattered for good.
