The European Court of Justice (ECJ) on Thursday (Dec 21) delivered its verdict on the blocking of the European Super League terming the act as ‘unlawful’. According to the European Court of Justice, blocking the formation of the new competition was against European Union (EU) law. The decision comes as a huge blow to international football governing body FIFA and European football governing body UEFA, who had blocked the formation of the league back in 2021.

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The statement detailed – when it comes to potential new competitions both FIFA and UEFA must ensure their powers are “transparent, objective, non-discriminatory and proportionate”.

ECJ’s statement

“However, the powers of Fifa and Uefa are not subject to any such criteria. Fifa and Uefa are, therefore, abusing a dominant position,” a statement released by the ECJ stated.

“Moreover, given their arbitrary nature, their rules on approval, control and sanctions must be held to be unjustified restrictions on the freedom to provide services.

“That does not mean that a competition such as the Super League project must necessarily be approved. The Court does not rule on that specific project in its judgment,” the statement further added.

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What is the European Super League?

In April 2021, a top cluster of continental clubs came together to form the European Super League (ESL) which included the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona along with the ‘big six’ Premier League sides. The cluster also included the likes of Juventus, Inter Milan and AC Milan before the plan was scrapped amid big fan protests. Upon criticism, 10 of the 12 clubs pulled out of the European Super League while UEFA decided to levy hefty fines on them. Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona though did not back out and are still part of the plan.

While Thursday proved to be the decisive day for ESL, several players and managers have opposed the idea of the formation of such a league. Current Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is against the idea of such a league as it affects the integrity of players and fans. On the player part, Champions League winner Bernardo Silva has also criticised the formation of the ESL stating winning the Champions League was his biggest dream rather than playing in a league consisting of only top teams.

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