UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin continued to share public disdain for the Super League concept but defended the Premier League from criticism.
- Super League meant to bring together big clubs
- Uproar over ruining spirit of football
- Plans shelved after backlash
WHAT HAPPENED? A 2021 proposal for a breakaway Super League involving Europe’s biggest teams fell apart due to fan protests and accusations of the powerful clubs gaining too much influence over the sport. Since then, the ultra-wealthy Premier League has faced criticism for being a de facto Super League that could eventually hoard all of the world’s best players.
AND WHAT’S MORE: While the original Super League concept was short-lived, clubs such as Juventus, Real Madrid and Barcelona continue to show interest in reviving the idea, in part because they feel concern at falling behind England’s top flight.
WHAT THEY SAID: “Jealousy sees everything except the truth,” Ceferin said to reporters. “Since the British government, supporters and clubs said no to the Super League, the Premier League has been demonised and labelled a Super League in its own right that needs to be toppled.
“However, the Premier League’s success was not achieved by accident. By adopting an audacious approach based on a vision, a strategy and a lot of hard work, its leaders and clubs developed a remarkable model founded on sporting merit, one of the most egalitarian systems in the world. Rather than a model to be destroyed, this is a model that should be followed.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Ceferin also launched a renewed set of attacks against the Super League, adding: “We have cynicism over morality. We have selfishness over solidarity. We have greed over benevolence. Self-absorption over openness to others. Self-interest over altruism. Shameful lies over the truth. Heirs over builders. Cartel over meritocracy and democracy. Stock prices over sporting merit. The quest for profit over the quest for trophies.”
IN TWO PHOTOS:
Getty Images
Getty Images
WHAT NEXT? UEFA is facing a challenge to its alleged position as a monopoly in European football. A final ruling is expected to be made next year by the European Courts of Justice.
