It looks like the infamous European Super League was not dead after all. Instead, it was merely bidding its time before rising from the ashes and making a public return.
It has been almost a year since the breakaway continental tournament was announced by its 12 founding members: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham, Juventus, Inter Milan, and AC Milan. While all clubs simultaneously revealed its launch in a bid to exhibit strength, unity, and leverage, things quickly began to fall apart.
Fans from all across the globe slammed this move, including the supporters of the aforementioned clubs. Legal action was threatened by UEFA and the founding members' domestic leagues. Not too long later, all six of the Premier League representatives withdrew from the tournament, with Atletico Madrid and the two Milan giants following suit shortly afterward.
However, Los Blancos, the Blaugrana, and the Old Lady remained on board and are now set to relaunch the league next week. This is as reported by the Telegraph, with the British news outlet claiming that Juventus president Andrea Agnelli will make a public announcement regarding the ESL and unveil new proposals.
The biggest issue with the tournament was its exclusivity. Initially, the 12 founding members were guaranteed permanent spots regardless of where they finish in their domestic leagues. However, this will be scrapped in favor of a traditional domestic league qualification.
It will be interesting to see how this will go down in the Premier League given that the six founding members were forced to pay fines and sign regulations that prohibit them from joining an unsanctioned championship. Nonetheless, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Juventus continue to wage war with UEFA, their biggest obstacle.
The issue the ESL's three remaining members have is with UEFA's "monopolistic" approach to European football and the manner in which they run their competitions, namely the Champions League. Additionally, concerns regarding PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and his close ties with the continental organization have been raised.
