UEFA confirm financial sanctions for Super League rebels

UEFA have confirmed that they have reached an agreement over punishments for the nine Super League sides who have formally withdrawn their interest in the competition.

The six English teams - Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham - were among the first to pull out, with Atletico Madrid, Inter and AC Milan eventually following suit. Only Barcelona, Juventus and Real Madrid remain committed to the cause.

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has held talks with all the sides who have distanced themselves from the plans, and the governing body have now confirmed on their official website that the nine teams have all agreed to a list of consequences for their actions.

On top of re-joining the European Club Association and continuing their legal efforts to pull out of the Super League, the nine clubs have all been asked to make a combined donation of £13m to benefit youth and grassroots football across Europe, as well as seeing 5% of their revenue from UEFA competition withheld for one season.

That percentage will obviously hit each team differently, with the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham, who aren't even on track to qualify for Europe this season, getting off pretty lightly.

The nine teams have also agreed to face substantial fines in future if they try anything like this again. An attempt to join an unauthorised competition will bring a fine of £87m, with any other breach bringing a fine of £44m.

“I said at the UEFA Congress two weeks ago that it takes a strong organisation to admit making a mistake especially in these days of trial by social media," Ceferin said. "These clubs have done just that.

"In accepting their commitments and willingness to repair the disruption they caused, UEFA wants to put this chapter behind it and move forward in a positive spirit.

"The measures announced are significant, but none of the financial penalties will be retained by UEFA. They will all be reinvested into youth and grassroots football in local communities across Europe, including the UK.

"These clubs recognised their mistakes quickly and have taken action to demonstrate their contrition and future commitment to European football. The same cannot be said for the clubs that remain involved in the so-called ‘Super League’ and UEFA will deal with those clubs subsequently.”

There is no mention of the punishment Barcelona, Juventus and Real Madrid will face, although UEFA are understood to be looking at their maximum disciplinary measure of a two-year expulsion from competitions.

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