European Super League relaunch plans with blockbuster format
By Tom Gott
The chief executive of the European Super League has confirmed plans to relaunch and create a breakaway competition to rival the Champions League.
Initial plans for the European Super League from back in 2021 were met with immense criticism from across Europe and significant protests from supporters ultimately saw English sides Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United withdraw their support.
Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus have remained committed to the plans and have battled UEFA and FIFA's threats to hand out punishments to those clubs who attempted to break away from the current structure.
Now, two years after the first announcement, the European Super League have confirmed their fresh plans to create a merit-based competition which could include no fewer than 80 teams.
"The foundations of European football are in danger of collapsing." executive Bernd Reichart said in a press release outlining their ten principles for a breakaway league.
"It's time for a change. It is the clubs that bear the entrepreneurial risk in football. But when important decisions are at stake, they are too often forced to sit idly by on the sidelines as the sporting and financial foundations crumble around them.
"Our talks have also made it clear that clubs often find it impossible to speak out publicly against a system that uses the threat of sanctions to thwart opposition.
"Our dialogue was open, honest, constructive and resulted in clear ideas about what changes are needed and how they could be implemented. There is a lot to do and we will continue our dialogue."
Reichart insisted that there would be no constant members of the new competition, which would be decided based on performances in domestic divisions and has now been designed to follow a similar format to that of the Champions League.
It has previously been reported that the group behind the European Super League have spoken with over 50 teams to try and find support for the project, with a view to creating a competition which would be played between 80 teams every season.
Reichart hopes to have the European Super League up and running by the 2024/25 season and is currently awaiting a ruling from the European Court of Justice over whether FIFA and UEFA have the power to stop clubs from competing.