Twelve elite clubs of Europe have formed a new organization and they have opted to play in a new midweek competition. The new competition named European Super League will consist of 15 founding members and 5 annual qualifiers who will join later. AC Milan, Arsenal, Atlético, Chelsea, Barcelona, Internazionale, Juventus, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur are the founding members of the competition and three clubs will join before the beginning of the tournament. The founding members will not be relegated from the tournament. The other five teams will have a promotion and relegation system.
The Story Of The European Super League; How Did It Start?
Twenty clubs will be divided into two groups and the clubs will play with each other in home-away format. The top four teams from each group will qualify for the knockout stage of the tournament. The final will be played at the weekend. The clubs are willing to play in their respective domestic leagues as well as participating in this one. UEFA and FIFA have strongly condemned the concept of the European Super League. The domestic leagues have also opposed the decision of making a separate league by these elite clubs.
The financial profit might be the main reason why the clubs have agreed to join the league. COVID-19 has impacted a lot on the revenues earned by the clubs. So, they have opted to take part in European Super League. Solidarity payments will grow in line with league revenues and are expected to be in excess of €10b during the course of the initial commitment period of the founders. These solidarity payments will follow a new model with full transparency and regular public reporting.
Which Are The Teams That Are Making The Move?
According to the sources, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Arsenal and Juventus have been the prime members who have proposed the league. The teams like Chelsea and Manchester City have joined the league in the fear of getting sidelined. However, the big clubs like Paris Saint Germain and Bayern Munich have not joined the league yet. The President of Bayern Munich, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has clarified that they have not participated in the planning the European Super League. They are convinced that the current Champions League in football guarantees a reliable basis.
Borussia Dortmund has also announced that they are not joining the European Super League.The CEO of Borussia Dortmund, Watzke said that the clubs want to implement the planned reform of the UEFA Champions League. The plans to found a Super League have been rejected. RB Leipzig has also issued a similar statement about not joining the European Super League.
What Next For This Season; How Will UEFA Respond Now?
At this moment, the remaining matches of UCL and UEL are very much doubtful. UEFA’s Alexander Ceferin will meet legal authorities to decide about sanctions for the clubs involved in the Champions League and Europa League this season. They will try to use all the sanctions against the clubs. The clubs will be banned from taking part in any of the UEFA tournaments as soon as possible and the players will not be able to play for their respective countries.
The former players are not happy about the reform of the European football structure. Gary Neville has slammed the owners of Manchester United publicly. Bacary Sagna has tweeted that football will not be the same. Former Chelsea player, Pat Nevin is also not quite happy with this tournament. So, the next few week will certainly be crucial for the future of European football.
