The first Super League only had teams from three countries: England, Spain and Italy. The format went down in less than 48 hours. The second Super League, reformulated by FC Barcelona, is much less elitist, broader, open and multinational and is thought of as a luxury counterweight to the current Premier League. Of 16 teams, as stated in the original plan, the promoters of the Super League have seen that their victory involves adding the more clubs the better to their cause. Hence, they have begun to have contacts with the best teams in Germany, Portugal, France (the big ones except PSG), the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as Spanish (Valencia) and Italian (Rome) teams that were not initially invited. moment. In total, they are talking to up to 50 teams to have more strength against UEFA.
"The Super League is not dead but very much alive," said Bernd Reichart, CEO of A22, on Friday the 16th, one day after the pronouncement of the General Counsel of the European Court of Justice (CJEU), a pronouncement favorable to the interests of UEFA. The words are accompanied by a lot of work and behind-the-scenes meetings to present the new Super League model. "It's better that we do it ourselves and organize now, before a sheikh from the Gulf comes and does it and takes the benefits," is one of the statements that they have thrown at their interlocutors.
Another of the aces they have in the Super League up their sleeve is that they already have an agreement with JP Morgan that would put up 4,000 million to organize the competition. That means a more than significant increase in income for some participants. For example, some figures that promoters are considering is that PSV Eindhoven receives less than 10 million for their television rights in the Eredivisie. With their entry into a future Super League they would multiply that figure by seven. That argument, when offered, makes the leaders smile because it would guarantee the sustainability of their entities.
To be optimistic, they do not just cling to the fact that the opinion is not binding on the Court of Luxembourg. Within the Super League they believe that the General Counsel, Athanasios Rantos, prepared his report very intelligently so that both UEFA and the promoters of the new competition can feel with arguments in his favor. The headlines were a great endorsement of UEFA. However, the fine print can be seen as a loophole for the creation of a self-managed tournament.
The plan led by Barça is for history to repeat itself: to isolate the English clubs and for them to join the project once it has started. This is what happened in the germ of the European Cup. The English federation closed in on the band and did not let its teams participate. Thus, the first edition, 1955-56, started without an English presence. The English got on the bandwagon late and it was not until 1968 that Manchester United's first victory came.
Something similar would now like the promoters of the Super League. Especially since all the Premier League teams –Liverpool, Chelsea, United, City, Arsenal and Tottenham were among the founders in April 2021– have signed statutes in which they are required not to participate in the creation of new formats outside of Premier rules. Doing so would result in expulsion.
To compete with the English league, the Super League matches would be played on weekends. The most optimistic version is that in two or three years the competition could be underway. The decision of the 15 judges of the Great Chamber of the CJEU that will be known in the spring may accelerate events.
