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The battle between the ESL and UEFA has raged on for more than a year, and is tilting in UEFA’s favour
In the ongoing battle for the future, soul and wealth of football, the proposed European Super League suffered another major setback with the European Court of Justice’s latest ruling in favour of UEFA and FIFA.
You may remember the small matter of 12 of Europe’s biggest clubs standing up to the continent’s organising body in April 2021, looking to create a breakaway super league that undercut UEFA.
While the move ultimately failed, UEFA and FIFA have made moves to completely squash any talk of a possible resurgence and this latest ruling by the court is a huge win for them.
“The FIFA-UEFA rules are compatible with EU competition law”
The organisers of the ESL started legal proceedings against FIFA and UEFA under the argument that UEFA held an unfair monopoly over European football which was contrary to the laws of the European Union, but the court has ruled in opposition of this argument.
UEFA’s statement at the start of proceedings said that “UEFA and FIFA keep and fiercely defend a monopolistic position in European football that goes against competition law, despite efforts from other operators to access the market.”
But in its ruling, the Advocate General of the European courts of Justice said “The FIFA-UEFA rules under which any new competition is subject to prior approval are compatible with EU competition law.”
Which means that FIFA or UEFA were within their rights to approve or reject any potential new competitions in football, including the ESL.
After what seems like a major victory, UEFA also released a statement which said:
“UEFA warmly welcomes today’s unequivocal Opinion recommending a ruling of the CJEU in support of our central mission to govern European football, protect the pyramid and develop the game across Europe.
“UEFA welcomes today’s unequivocal Opinion of Advocate General Rantos, which is an encouraging step towards preserving the existing dynamic and democratic governance structure of the European football pyramid. The Opinion reinforces the central role of federations in protecting the sport, upholding fundamental principles of sporting merit and open access across our members, as well as uniting football with shared responsibility and solidarity.
“Football in Europe remains united and steadfastly opposed to the ESL, or any such breakaway proposals, which would threaten the entire European sports ecosystem.
“While we await the Court’s final judgment due next year, UEFA, as a public interest, not-for-profit governing body, will continue to be fully focused on its mission to develop football for all, in close cooperation with national associations, leagues, clubs, players, fans, EU institutions, governments and other relevant stakeholders who have the true values of football at heart.”
This recommendation which will most likely become ratified by the court’s final judgment could spell the end of the ESL debate as we know it and would definitely be a hammer blow to the remaining clubs who still had hopes of a breakaway league.
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