The European Union Court of Justice ruled in favour of the European Super League calling out UEFA and FIFA’s actions as “illegal”.
The court stated that neither UEFA nor FIFA can stop the creation of a new club football competition as it is contrary to EU Law.
“The FIFA and UEFA rules making any new interclub football project subject to their prior approval, such as the Super League, and prohibiting clubs and players from playing in those competitions, are unlawful. There is no framework for the FIFA and UEFA rules ensuring that they are transparent, objective, non-discriminatory, and proportionate,” said the EU Court of Justice.
“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.”
The ruling is of significant value as there is no major obstacle left in the formation of the league. Remember, UEFA is changing the format of the UEFA Champions League from next season which would increase the number of matches for players as well, this can play a key role in the creation of the league.
“Clubs are now free from threats of sanctions & free to determine their future. UEFA’s monopoly is over," said Bernd Reichart, CEO of the Super League.
UEFA also released a statement on the EU Court's historical judgment.
“This ruling does not signify an endorsement or validation of the so-called 'super league', rather it highlights a pre-existing deficit within UEFA's prior authorization framework, a technical aspect that was already recognized and addressed in June 2022.”
It goes all the way back to April 2021 when 12 clubs — Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Juventus, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham Spurs, and Liverpool — combined forces to form a new league for the players.
Initially, the league was supposed to play in a close format where 12 top teams would play one another. All the clubs involved faced massive backlash from fans for approving such a format that would not allow small clubs to play such a big competition after which it was confirmed that it would no longer be a close format.
However, with the increasing pressure from UEFA and FIFA, all the clubs except Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Juventus publicly left the project. The Italian club, too, left the project after some time but the two Spanish powerhouses remained till the end and eventually won the case.