Izuchukwu E.N
The contentious European Super League’s organizers, A22 Sports Management, altered the league’s proposed framework in an effort to gain wider acceptance.
A22 CEO Bernd Reichart asserts that a revived European Super League would be a tournament with no permanent players and based only on athletic ability.
The organization supported a 12-club ESL proposal in 2021, but it was abandoned after backlash from the general public.
“The foundations of European football are in danger of collapsing,” Reichart told the German newspaper Die Welt on Thursday.
“It’s time for a change. It is the clubs that bear the entrepreneurial risk in football.
“But when important decisions are at stake, they are too often forced to sit idly by on the sidelines as the sporting and financial foundations crumble around them.”
In 2021, the A22 shortlisted 20 teams, including 12 founding members, three unnamed clubs, and five clubs that would have annually qualified based on their local achievements, to compete in the controversial European Super League.
Tottenham, Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool all withdrew from the project within 48 hours after receiving harsh criticism from fans and football enthusiasts.
To date, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Juventus are still backing the league and pushing for its actualization.
In the new ESL, there would be 60 to 80 teams, according to Reichart. Each team would continue to play in its local domestic league and be guaranteed a minimum of 14 games per season.
However, the A22 didn’t elaborate on the format further than mentioned above.
The Uefa and Fifa campaign to prevent the formation of a European Super League received a lot of support in December.
However, the European Court of Justice’s advocate general stated in a report that the rules established by the game’s national and international governing bodies were “compliant with EU competition law.”
Hence, UEFA and FIFA’s threat to penalize clubs and players who joined a breakaway league violated the statute on fair competition.
In the spring, the European Court of Justice is expected to make a verdict on the legality of a breakaway league co-existing with other leagues in Europe.
