The Super League claimed victory in Europe’s top court after it was ruled that Uefa and Fifa had broken EU law in their bid to stop the rival competition from coming to fruition.
“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,” the European Court of Justice ruled.
However, the summary of the written judgment stressed that its ruling doesn’t necessarily mean that the Super League project should now be authorised, just that the two governing bodies have been “abusing a dominant position” in the football market.
A22 Sports, the company promoting the Super League project, said they have “won the right to compete”. Following the ruling, the firm’s CEO Bernd Reichart declared in a social media post from the A22 account that “the UEFA monopoly is over. Football is free”.
Uefa remain defiant in their stance that the Super League should not be allowed to go ahead, and in a statement claimed that amendments made to the organisation’s rules are compliant with European law.
“This ruling does not signify an endorsement or validation of the so-called ‘super league’; it rather underscores a pre-existing shortfall within UEFA’s pre-authorisation framework, a technical aspect that has already been acknowledged and addressed in June 2022,” the statement read.
“UEFA is confident in the robustness of its new rules, and specifically that they comply with all relevant European laws and regulations.
“UEFA remains resolute in its commitment to uphold the European football pyramid, ensuring that it continues to serve the broader interests of society. We will continue to shape the European sports model collectively with national associations, leagues, clubs, fans, players, coaches, EU institutions, governments and partners alike.
“We trust that the solidarity-based European football pyramid that the fans and all stakeholders have declared as their irreplaceable model will be safeguarded against the threat of breakaways by European and national laws.”
The European Super League was revealed in April 2021, with Premier League teams Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, and Tottenham among the founding clubs.
The competition’s formation was met with widespread opposition, however. All six English clubs backed out of the project shortly after its announcement.
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