Brussels, Dec 21 (EFE).- Soccer’s global and European governing bodies, Fifa and Uefa, cannot ban clubs and players from playing in breakaway competitions such as the Super League, the European Court of Justice said on Thursday.
In the landmark ruling, the court explained that Fifa and Uefa were “abusing a dominant position” by not allowing a rival competition from entering the market.
The case was brought by the European Superleague Company, which argued that Fifa and Uefa were breaking European Union competition laws.
The ECJ said that “Fifa and Uefa rules making any new interclub football project subject to their prior approval, such as the Super League, and prohibiting clubs and players from playing in those competitions, are unlawful.”
It added that the governing bodies’ “arbitrary (…) rules on approval, control and sanctions” were “unjustified restrictions on the freedom to provide services.”
The decision comes as a blow to Fifa and Uefa and how they control the world’s most popular sport, although the ECJ clarified that ruling does not “necessarily” mean that the Super League project must be approved.
Twelve leading European clubs agreed in 2021 to create the Super League, a midweek competition that would rival the Uefa Champions League.
But unlike the Champions League – in which teams qualify based on results in their domestic leagues – the Super League’s founding would have their places in the competition guaranteed every season, regardless of how they perform domestically.
Critics of the project say it would undermine the spirit of merit-based competition and is being driven by the greed of Europe’s elite clubs.
The Super League project was spearheaded by Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus, and was backed by six English Premier League teams – Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham, as well as Atletico Madrid, Inter and AC Milan.
The plans led to an angry backlash from fans and other clubs, particularly in England, with the six English teams withdrawing within three days.
Fifa and Uefa had threatened to sanction or ban any clubs or players who take part in the Super League.
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez shared his “enormous satisfaction” with the ECJ’s ruling, celebrating the fact that “football will never again be a monopoly”.
Barcelona’s president Joan Laporta said the ruling provides “a historic opportunity” to highlight the “serious problems that currently jeopardize the future viability of the vast majority of clubs.”
“This proposal, I insist, aims to improve football as a whole,” he said.
Uefa pointed out that the ruling had not endorsed or validated the Super League, insisting that it is confident that its new rules “comply with all relevant European laws and regulations.”
“We trust that the solidarity-based European football pyramid that the fans and all stakeholders have declared as their irreplaceable model will be safeguarded against the threat of breakaways by European and national laws,” Uefa concluded. EFE
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