BREAKING NEWS European court deals HUGE blow to FIFA and UEFA by ruling against punishment for European Super League rebels in landmark verdict, sparking fears breakaway league could be resurrected

• Decision marks the latest stage in an ongoing legal fight launched by the rebels
• In November, Florentino Perez dubbed the project ‘more necessary than ever’ 
• IAN LADYMAN: I’d rather watch a match at my local school than watch Man City in the Club World Cup – It’s All Kicking Off

UEFA and FIFA were found to have acted against competition law in their blocking of the creation of a European Super League in 2021, the European Court of Justice has ruled. 

The binding ruling handed out on Thursday marked the latest stage in a legal process initiated by the European Super League Company after clubs who participated in the breakaway plans were threatened with sanctions by the governing bodies. 

The announcement of a new super league set to feature the Premier League ‘Big Six’ as well as European giants including Juventus, Real Madrid, and Barcelona came in April 2021, but it was almost immediately hit with a barrage of overwhelming criticism. 

Much of the argument against the league’s formation was due to the ‘closed’ nature of the brand-new JPMorgan Chase-backed competition which would see the founder members protected from relegation. 

Within 72 hours, nine of the clubs involved in the plans – including all of the English clubs which made up the group – had pulled out after uproar from supporters, the British government, and FIFA and UEFA. 

The European Court of Justice dealt FIFA and UEFA a huge blow in bid to suppress ESL plans

UEFA head Aleksander Ceferin was a vocal critic of the breakaway plans first launched in 2021

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In a sweeping initial victory for the rebel plans, the Grand Chamber’s decision stated: ‘The FIFA and UEFA rules on prior approval of interclub football competitions, such as the Super League, are contrary to EU law.’

Specifically, the governing bodies’ actions were ‘contrary to competition law and the freedom to provide services’. 

‘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,’ the verdict summary read. 

The 10 principles for a European Super League 

• An open competition with several leagues based on sporting merit 
• Clubs involved remain committed to national competitions 
• Greater distribution of financial resources to improve competitiveness 
• Health of players essential when deciding how many games played each year 
• Transparent financial rules with European competitions governed by clubs, not third parties 
• The aim is to create the best football competition in the world 
• Improved fan experience is key
• Increased funding in women’s football to put it in spotlight alongside men’s format 
• Significant increase in solidarity towards grassroots football
• Respect for EU laws and values

‘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 wake of the judgement, the case will now return to the Madrid-based court where the European Super League Company first applied for the temporary injunction from related FIFA and UEFA sanctions. 

The decision comes in opposition to the advice handed out by Advocate General Athanasios Rantos to the ECJ in December 2022, which found that European Union competition law was in fact compatible with the restrictions doled out by UEFA and FIFA to the rebel clubs. 

At the time, UEFA described the AG opinion as ‘unequivocal’ and a ‘clear rejection’ of the efforts made by 12 of Europe’s top clubs in 2021 to form their own league. 

However, Thursday’s judgement did not go so far as to advise against the formation of a similar league. 

‘(The verdict on EU competition laws) does not mean that a competition such as the Super League project must necessarily be approved,’ the court noted. 

‘The Court, having been asked generally about the FIFA and UEFA rules, does not rule on that specific project in its judgement.’

In February, A22 – the company formed to both sponsor and assist the creation of the European Super League – announced a new format beyond the 20 teams which would comprise of several divisions and be guided by 10 overarching principals. 

This tournament would be run alongside existing domestic tournaments, and a woman’s competition is also said to be in the works. 

Fans turned out in full force to protest the announcement of the ‘closed’ league in April 2021

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Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is one of the leading figures in favour of the new league

Last month Real Madrid president and vocal supporter of a potential European Super League Florentino Perez called the plans ‘more necessary than ever’. 

‘The situation is very serious, either we react now or football will not survive,’ Perez said. 

‘The main problem is that there are managers who act without thinking about the fans, European football does not belong to the president of UEFA nor the Spanish one to that of LaLiga.

‘The Super League is more necessary than ever, the objective is to offer the best football and it is the clubs that have to control their destiny.’

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