First of all, a challenge is proposed: imagine that the biggest clubs in the European continent have united and agreed to defect from UEFA, as well as from their respective confederations, to form a super league in Europe. Well, although it seems like fiction, such a plan has been devised for at least three years and may come off the record until 2021.
An extensive report published on Friday by the German magazine “Der Spiegel” in partnership with the Football Leaks team revealed, with immense wealth of details, the project discussed at a small pace for the creation of what we can call the European Super League. Found over months, the article is based on confidential documents and e-mail exchanges between representatives of the continent’s biggest clubs.
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Current champions of the Champions, Real Madrid would be one of the founders of the Superliga – Photo: Reproduction / Twitter
At first, 16 clubs are part of the “conspiracy”. Eleven of them are considered the “founders” – and will have privileges, as they can never be demoted:
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, Juventus, Chelsea, Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City, Liverpool, Milan e Bayern de Munique.
Also, at least for the first edition of the Super League, another five clubs will participate as “guests”. Are they:
Atlético de Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Olympique de Marseille, Inter Milan and Rome.
According to the report, the clubs opted for the rebellion because they understood that the results of the main leagues on the continent, especially the German and Italian championships, are too predictable. Even the Champions League, won by Real Madrid in the last three seasons, would be following that path.
– The clubs of the world have come together secretly, all apparently with a single idea in mind: boredom means the death of any show. And the only way to combat boredom is to put on an even bigger and brighter show, the biggest football show on earth. The idea is to create a Super League, an elite league of high level competition reserved exclusively for the main names in European club football. Every game is a top game. This is the secret society plan – says an excerpt from the report.
Charlie Stillitano, a famous American sports executive, would be one of the people leading the project. In a meeting with representatives of Real Madrid in December 2015, he said, according to the documents obtained, that the calculation is that each club member of the Superliga could obtain an annual revenue of “more than 500 million euros”.
By way of comparison, Real Madrid, winner of the Champions League that season, received around € 80 million from UEFA.
As soon as the idea of forming the Super League was raised, and the first steps were taken, even in 2015, internal questions were raised. Clubs feared the consequences that a possible Uefa disbandment could have.
- Would clubs be held liable for any loss to UEFA?
- Would clubs still be forced to release their players to the national teams after leaving UEFA?
- Could leagues and associations penalize players for participating in the Super League?
- Could players have their contracts terminated if the club played in the Super League?
Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, the only Germans among the 16 clubs, in turn, are separate cases. In Germany, players’ contracts are bound by a clause linking them exclusively to the Bundesliga. In other words, giving up the German Championship to play in the Super League could result in the cancellation of the athletes’ bond.
According to the report, despite the questions and marked by a powerful legal department, the clubs intend to make the Super League a reality.
Read the full Football Leaks report, in English, by clicking here.
