UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has declared football the ultimate victor following an agreement with Real Madrid that officially brings an end to the contentious European Super League project.
The Spanish giants and European football's governing body announced a cessation of hostilities on Wednesday, nearly five years after Real, spearheaded by president Florentino Perez, was a primary architect of the breakaway league.
While England's ‘Big Six’ clubs swiftly abandoned the project amid intense fan and government pressure back in April 2021, Real and Barcelona remained staunch proponents, with Real even initiating legal action against UEFA over its efforts to block its formation.
Barcelona formally withdrew last weekend, and the recent accord with Real Madrid now firmly consigns the controversial project to history.
Speaking at the UEFA Congress in Brussels on Thursday, Mr Ceferin expressed his relief: "I’m personally very happy that Real Madrid and Barcelona joined the family again. Honestly speaking, we were all tired of these disputes."
He added, emphasising respect despite disagreements: "We had some disagreements with the president of Real Madrid, Mr Florentino Perez, but let me be clear we never lost respect – to ourselves, to each other, and we never lost the love for the game."
Mr Ceferin concluded: "And let me be even clearer, the only winner of this situation is football, nobody else."
Nasser Al Khelaifi, president of Paris St Germain and chairman of the European Football Clubs (EFC) group, played a pivotal role in bringing Real back into the fold, with Mr Ceferin acknowledging his "instrumental" leadership.
Through the UC3 joint commercial venture with UEFA, the EFC now commands greater influence in the governance and commercial strategy of UEFA’s club competitions, and how revenue is distributed.
