When most clubs withdrew from proposed plans for a European Super League last year, many hoped it would be the last they heard of such a controversial idea. However, fast forward just over a year later, and those three dreaded words refuse to go away.
The Super League was - and still is - a newly proposed European competition which is governed by its founding clubs. When plans were announced, The Super League said it would consist of 20 top clubs, including 15 founders and five annual qualifiers. The concept was that there would be two Groups of ten clubs each, playing home and away fixtures within the Group each year. Its main goal was to bring some of the best clubs and players in the world together, ultimately delivering excitement and drama 'never before seen in football'.
Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham were among a total of twelve clubs to have signed up for the breakaway competition without any fan consultation taking place. This immediately led to furious backlash from supporters, governing bodies and even world leaders. Meanwhile, UEFA threatened to ban any player who was involved in the "cynical project founded on the self-interest of a few clubs."
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As protests continued and the anger increased, The Super League's plans came crashing down just two days after the project was announced. The six founding Premier League clubs and a host of European sides confirmed they had pulled out from participation as a result of what can only be described as one of the biggest fallouts the game has ever witnessed.
Arsenal admitted that they made a mistake and subsequently apologised, while Spurs Chairman Daniel Levy said he regretted the 'anxiety and upset caused by the ESL proposal', a message that was similarly repeated by the Chelsea board.
However, despite the rapid downfall and the controversy it caused, the idea of a Super League is still very much alive today. Speaking earlier this month, Real Madrid president and chairman of The Super League, Florentino Perez, defended the project before receiving support from his Juventus counterpart Andrea Agnelli and then Barcelona's Joan Laporta.
"In tennis, Nadal and Federer have played 40 times in 15 years. Nadal and Djokovic have played 59 matches in 16 years," Perez said during the club's AGM. "In football, we've only played Liverpool nine times in 67 years. We've played Chelsea four times in the history of the European Cup. What sense does it make to deprive fans of all these games?" he added.
In a recent letter to shareholders, Juventus chief Agnelli also reaffirmed his "commitment" to the project, while Laporta said that "a Super League would be an improved Champions League, with a better format, it would surely be the most attractive competition in the world."
As of right now, a court case between European football's governing body and the three clubs that remain in favour of The European Super League is ongoing. Legal representatives from UEFA will face off with those representing the interests of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg in a case that is expected to last until the end of the year.
The case is between UEFA and the European Super League Company, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus. The latter claimed that both UEFA and FIFA have 'monopolised' the organisation of elite football competitions and acted beyond their constitution by shutting down plans for the new breakaway league, which fell through in April of 2021.
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