2023-12-21T15:07:07+00:00
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/ The European Court of Justice ruled on Thursday that the decisions of the International Federation “FIFA” and the European Union “UEFA” to prevent the establishment of the European “Super League” are illegal, describing the two federations as abusing their powers.
The court said in its decision that “the rules of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and the European Football Association (UEFA), on the basis of which the decision was taken to obstruct the establishment of the competing Super League, violate the European Union’s law of the game,” according to the German website “DW Arabic.”
She pointed out that “the rules of the International and European Federations that make any new football project between clubs subject to their prior approval, such as the Super League, and prevent clubs and players from playing in those competitions, are illegal.”
The summary of the ruling stressed that it does not necessarily mean that the Super League project should be licensed at the present time, but only that FIFA and UEFA, with their decision, are “abusing their position” to dominate the football market.
A22, the sports development company set up to create the European Super League, has claimed that UEFA and FIFA’s monopoly on football competitions violates EU competition and free movement law.
“We have won the right to compete. UEFA’s monopoly is over. Football is free,” said CEO Bernd Reichart. “Clubs are now free from the threat of sanctions and are free to decide their own future.”
The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Justice has been consulted to determine whether FIFA and UEFA acted against competition law by preventing the European Super League from taking place in 2021 and then seeking to sanction the clubs involved in founding the tournament.
In April 2021, 12 of Europe’s biggest clubs presented their master plan to create a Super League with permanent membership to compete in, to replace the UEFA Champions League.
But this plan was quickly rejected after strong objections from leagues, federations and fans. UEFA moved to modernize the Champions League, creating a giant league with 36 teams.
Now the organizers of the Super League have a new plan, with the participation of 60 to 80 teams from several divisions. UEFA has threatened the European Super League teams and their players with exclusion from all competitions, including the World Cup and the European Championship.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin described the club presidents who founded the tournament as “snakes and liars” and threatened to exclude players from the clubs participating in the European Super League.
Ten of the 12 clubs that announced the establishment of the tournament more than two and a half years ago have withdrawn, leaving only Barcelona and Real Madrid, the two Spanish clubs, after Juventus withdrew from the project this year. Real and Barcelona have begun legal proceedings to protect their position, with the Court of Justice asking the Madrid court to rule on points related to European Union law.
The two Spanish clubs accused UEFA of violating European laws by exploiting its dominance in the European competitions market.