European Super League LIVE: A22’s breakaway format won’t include Premier League clubs after ‘ban’ claims

The controversial European Super League was given fresh hope of revival after a landmark European Court of Justice ruling.

The Grand Chamber of the ECJ had been debating whether Uefa and Fifa acted against competition law by blocking the European Super League in 2021 and sanctioning clubs involved, but has ruled that the regulations at the time concerning the breakaway were inadequate and that the governing bodies acted “unlawfully” in blocking the rebel tournament.

The EU’s top court ruled that Fifa and Uefa abused their dominant position by forbidding clubs outright to compete in a ESL, but added that the Super League may still not be approved.

“We have won the right to compete. The Uefa monopoly is over. Football is free,” said A22 CEO Bernd Reichart. “Clubs are now free from the threat of sanction and free to determine their own futures.”

In addition to the Uefa ban, the Super League’s initial plans that were launched in April 2021 went down in flames due to huge backlash from fans – specifically surrounding the breakaway tournament being a ‘closed shop’ protecting big teams with no promotion or relegation and no indication of a women’s competition.

Following the ECJ ruling, the Super League has now relaunched with a new format – proposing men’s and women’s midweek European competitions with promotion and relegation included and all Super League matches being free to watch.

“The Court of Justice of the European Union today announced its ruling in the case regarding the anti-competitive practices of Uefa – ending its 69-year monopoly in cross-border club football in Europe,” said A22. “This clears the path for clubs to organise and manage pan-European football competitions.

“Following today’s landmark ruling, A22 announces a new proposal for men’s and women’s midweek European competitions with participation based on sporting merit with promotion/relegation and no permanent members.

“The proposal also includes innovative plans to launch the world’s leading direct-to-fan sports streaming platform, where billions of fans would be able to watch live all Super League matches for free.”

Well, the women’s one is similar to the men’s but without the third tier essentially, so would comprise of 32 teams across two tiers.

But when it comes to relegation, again the bottom two from the top league would be replaced by the finalists of the one below. While in that league, four clubs would leave and be replaced by others based on domestic league performances.

It is unclear how teams would be initially allocated into the leagues only that in the initial year of the competition, clubs will be selected based upon an index of transparent, performance-based criteria.

Once there, the bottom two from the top league would be replaced by the second-tier finalists.

The same would be the case between the ‘gold’ and ‘blue’ leagues. While for the third-tier, 20 of the 32 clubs will leave the competition altogether, replaced by those merited on domestic performance.

What do these new plans mean for European football? How would a European Super League actually work? And how do the latest proposals compare to previous, controversial plans?

Which clubs are backing the ESL? And, with today’s ruling, what timeline can fans expect for the plans to come to life, if at all?

If you have a question for our chief football writer Miguel Delaney, submit it here for The Independent’s latest “Ask Me Anything” event.

Following the landmark judgement, A22, the company backing the European Super League live-streamed a video where it laid out its plans for the new men’s and women’s competitions.

The new proposed men’s competition is a three-tier structure with 64 teams taking part, chief executive officer Bernd Reichart repeatedly insisted that there would be no permanent members

The 64 teams would be split into three tiers, slightly uninspiringly called Star, Gold and Blue. The top tier or ‘star’ league would have 16 teams, as would Gold, while Blue would have 32 teams.

The top two tiers would have two groups of eight with each team playing 14 matches, seven home and seven away, with the top four from each group going into a two-legged quarter and semi-final stage before a final on a neutral venue.

The Blue league would comprise of 32 teams in four groups of eight with the top two of each going into the two-legged quarters and semi-finals stage.

Will Premier League clubs be able to join the new Super League?

It appears as though Premier League clubs will not be able to join, even if the new proposal does get approved.

The UK government’s Department of Culture, Media and Sport released a statement that indicated a bill about to pass into law, which sets up a new independent football regulator, would make it illegal for British clubs to join a breakaway league.

“The attempt to create a breakaway competition was a defining moment in English football and was universally condemned by fans, clubs and the Government,” said a DCMS spokesperson.

“We took decisive action at the time by triggering the fan-led review of football governance, which called for the creation of a new independent regulator for English football. We will shortly be bringing forward legislation that makes this a reality, and will stop clubs from joining any similar breakaway competitions in the future.”

The UK is no longer bound by EU law since Brexit, so clubs would not be able to appeal to the European Court of Justice.

Amid the thousands of words in the European Court of Justice ruling, as well as those in the immediate relaunch of the European Super League, the only ones that really matter are whether the project can go ahead.

The answer is that it remains immensely complicated, and all advantage still lies with Uefa, as well as sporting governing bodies generally. The Super League is still subject to authorisation rules and procedures, they just have to be transparent.

The end result of all of this was that they just have to amend and update their rules on pre-authorisation and make them compliant with European Union law. The headlines that were immediately fixated upon basically meant that Uefa was rebuked for the procedure of its laws rather than the substance. The old rules were criticised. That doesn’t mean they were wrong to have such rules.

A huge part of A22’s announcement for a new European Super League was that the games will be available to watch for free. That is because all the matches will be viewed on a new streaming platform called Unify.

A22 says: “Unify is our proposal for a state-of-the-art digital streaming platform. It will democratise football by allowing fans everywhere to watch new European Super League games for free.

“Unify has the potential to be the leading direct-to-fan sports streaming platform in the world, bringing billions of fans closer to the game than ever before. In addition to live matches, the platform will offer highlights, match insights and analysis, club-specific content, and many other interactive options. It will allow fans to connect as never before with their favourite clubs and players as well as with friends and fan communities.

“All men’s and women’s league matches would be distributed side by side, taking “centre stage” on the platform. With Unify, the women’s game would finally have the global platform it deserves.

“The Unify Platform will offer a tiered model. The advertising-supported free tier will allow fans to watch live new European Super League matches for free. Subscription tiers would also be offered for those who prefer to view matches with minimal advertising while enjoying advanced features such as favourite camera angles, live match data and other interactive options. Distribution partnerships with broadcasters, streaming services, clubs and content providers will also be an important component of the Unify experience to ensure ease of access for fans.”

Uefa has said that it remains confident it can continue to uphold the European football pyramid despite a ruling against the body at the European Court of Justice.

The ECJ’s Grand Chamber found that Uefa and Fifa had acted outside of European Union law when blocking the original plans for a European Super League in April 2021.

The proposed breakaway venture quickly collapsed after the withdrawal of six Premier League clubs, who were among 12 original members for a closed shop league. A22 Sports have since revamped their idea to an open competition.