European Super League: Which clubs have ruled themselves out of participating?

The decision breathed new life into the plans to form a new midweek tournament to rival, and eventually replace, existing competitions like the Champions League, after the previous proposed iteration in 2021 collapsed in calamitous fashion.

Twelve clubs were involved in those initial plans for a closed-shop tournament, prompting visceral reactions from supporters who felt that the very essence of the world's most popular sport was under threat from a select group of high-profile clubs.

Nine of those clubs, including all six English participants, soon performed a U-turn to abandon the plans, while Juventus also eventually distanced themselves to leave Real Madrid and Barcelona as the only remaining proponents of the controversial revolution.

The Spanish giants founded A22 Sports in an attempt to revise the plans and create a new version of the proposals which would resonate with fans more, and they have unsurprisingly thrown their weight behind the new European Super League, which was revealed in the wake of Thursday's ruling.

However, as things stand they remain alone in their support of the competition, with a host of governing bodies, clubs and influential individuals rejecting the latest proposals and reaffirming their commitment to UEFA, FIFA and the European Clubs Association.

The teams to have spoken out against the plans include Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid, all of whom were among the original 12 to back the initial proposal in 2021.

Other European heavyweights like Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund have also rejected the new tournament, having not been involved two years ago either.

However, while Barcelona and Real Madrid are the only clubs to have voiced their support so far, there has been notable silence from some of the others from the original 12, with Liverpool, Arsenal, AC Milan and Juventus yet to release statements on the ruling.

Here, Sports Mole rounds up the reaction from some of the notable bodies, clubs and figures within the sport to have rejected the proposals so far.

FIFA

FIFA has taken note of the ruling issued today by the Court of Justice of the European Union in relation to the European Superleague Company SL.

FIFA will now analyse the decision in coordination with UEFA, the other confederations and the member associations before commenting further.

In line with its Statutes, FIFA firmly believes in the specific nature of sport, including the pyramid structure - which is underpinned by sporting merit - and the principles of competitive balance and financial solidarity.

Football owes its long and successful history to the above-mentioned principles, which FIFA, the confederations and the member associations will continue to promote in the future, in the interest of all football fans worldwide.

UEFA

UEFA takes note of the judgment delivered today by the ECJ in the European Super League case.

This ruling does not signify an endorsement or validation of the so-called 'super league'; it rather underscores a pre-existing shortfall within UEFA's pre-authorisation framework, a technical aspect that has already been acknowledged and addressed in June 2022. UEFA is confident in the robustness of its new rules, and specifically that they comply with all relevant European laws and regulations.

UEFA remains resolute in its commitment to uphold the European football pyramid, ensuring that it continues to serve the broader interests of society. We will continue to shape the European sports model collectively with national associations, leagues, clubs, fans, players, coaches, EU institutions, governments and partners alike.

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.

PREMIER LEAGUE

The Premier League notes today's judgment in the European Court of Justice case involving the "European Superleague Company", FIFA and UEFA. This is a significant ruling and we will now fully examine its implications for the game.

The ruling does not endorse the so-called "European Super League" and the Premier League continues to reject any such concept. Supporters are of vital importance to the game and they have time and again made clear their opposition to a "breakaway" competition that severs the link between domestic and European football.

The Premier League reiterates its commitment to the clear principles of open competition that underpin the success of domestic and international club competitions.

Football thrives on the competitiveness created by promotion and relegation, the annual merit-based qualification from domestic leagues and cups to international club competitions and the longstanding rivalries and rituals that come with weekends being reserved for domestic football.

These principles are enshrined in the Premier League Owners' Charter, introduced in June 2022, which aims to improve the collective strength and competitiveness of the League in the best interests of the wider game.

Since 2021, the Premier League, alongside other football bodies, has also strengthened its rules and governance in this area.

The Premier League will continue to engage in an open and constructive dialogue, with all relevant football stakeholders, on how best to protect and enhance the complementary balance of domestic and international club football.

LA LIGA

LALIGA stresses that the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) does not sanction the European Super League and that in 2022 UEFA already included a modification to its regulations for the authorisation of new competitions, which is adapted to what the CJEU is now ruling.

Although the promoters of the Super League claim that this judgment is in their favour, the reality is that the CJEU has been clear in stating that "it does not mean that a competition such as the Super League project must necessarily be approved. The Court, having been asked generally about the FIFA and UEFA rules, does not rule on that specific project in its judgment."

LALIGA, the only league involved in the proceedings, welcomes this statement, which is in line with the formal position expressed by an unprecedented 23 EU and EEA national governments, who joined the football and sporting community at large in defending the football pyramid against secessionist models such as the so-called European Super League.

The essence of this ruling also aligns with the conclusions of the Advocate General of the CJEU from December 2022, who stated that "although the European Super League Company has the freedom to create its own independent football competition outside the ecosystem of UEFA or FIFA, it cannot, in addition to creating that competition, continue to participate in football competitions organised by FIFA and UEFA without the prior authorisation of those federations."

The ruling confirms what we have always said: anyone can organise competitions outside the UEFA and FIFA ecosystem, this cannot be prohibited, and no one has questioned this. The judicial question is the condition for these competitions to be under the UEFA and FIFA ecosystem, i.e. that there must be transparent, clear and objective rules for the approval of new competitions. In 2022, UEFA already established a procedure to authorise new competitions that can be used by the European Super League or any other competition," said Javier Tebas, President of LALIGA.

Regardless of this ruling, the entire football ecosystem, including players, coaches, leagues, federations, or clubs, have already spoken out loud and clear to say they do not desire a model that perpetuates the participation of a privileged few, restricting the pinnacle of European football to an elite rather than an open sport for all.

The creation of a league designed to enrich the wealthiest clubs and concentrate power to a small number of privileged teams would also result in the loss of tens of thousands of jobs and drastically reduce tax revenues for public coffers across the continent.

In this regard, according to the expert report prepared by KPMG, in Spain alone a project like the European Super League would cause a 55% loss in overall revenues for LALIGA and would jeopardise an industry that generates over 194,000 jobs and €8.39 billion in taxes, representing 1.44% of Spain's GDP.

The European Parliament itself approved a report advocating "for a European model of sport that recognises the need for a strong commitment to integrating the principles of solidarity, sustainability, inclusion, open competition, sporting merit, and equity. Consequently, it strongly opposes segregated competitions that undermine these principles and jeopardise the stability of the sports ecosystem in general."

Therefore, despite the clear positions expressed by fans, clubs, players, federations, the European Parliament, EU governments, and now the CJEU, to reinforce and ensure the defence of the European football ecosystem, its jobs, contribution to the economy, etc., we urge the European Commission to activate the necessary mechanisms to introduce legislative measures that protect European football from future similar attacks.

It is essential to continue closely collaborating with national federations, leagues, clubs, fans, players, coaches, EU institutions, governments, and other stakeholders to nurture the development of football, promote growth, and preserve the fundamental values that have made European football the resounding success story it is today.

EUROPEAN CLUB ASSOCIATION

European Club Association (ECA), representing nearly 500 professional football clubs across Europe, takes note of the judgment issued by the European Court of Justice today.

To be absolutely clear, the judgment in no way whatsoever supports or endorses any form of Super League project.