Premier League’s ‘big six’ confirm they’ve signed up to European Super League

SportsCafe Desk

BySportsCafe Desk, SportsCafe Editor

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In a statement released today, twelve clubs from across Europe’s big five leagues have confirmed that they created and joined a newly formed European Super League. The creation of said league has been touted for many years and has finally come to fruition with 12 clubs joining hands as founders.

European football was thrown to the wolves on Sunday after the Sunday Times reported that five out of the Premier League’s “big six” had accepted a proposal to join the European Super League. Reports and various other sources later indicated that 15 clubs from across Europe’s big five leagues were set to join with 12 already confirmed, including six from the Premier League. That saw UEFA and the various domestic federations react to condemn the plan with them looking to bans the teams from domestic competitions amongst others.

However, earlier today, a statement from the 12 clubs confirmed that they have joined and founded the European Super League with a press release confirming the same. The statement on the Super League’s website confirmed the news and revealed that three more clubs are set to join "ahead of the inaugural season." The statement also added that the founding clubs are looking to hold discussions with UEFA and FIFA to bring together the best outcome possible.

“Twelve of Europe’s leading football clubs have today come together to announce they have agreed to establish a new mid-week competition, the Super League, governed by its Founding Clubs. AC Milan, Arsenal FC, Atlético de Madrid, Chelsea FC, FC Barcelona, FC Internazionale Milano, Juventus FC, Liverpool FC, Manchester City, Manchester United, Real Madrid CF and Tottenham Hotspur have all joined as Founding Clubs. It is anticipated that a further three clubs will join ahead of the inaugural season, which is intended to commence as soon as practicable,” reads the statement on the Super League’s official website.

“Going forward, the Founding Clubs look forward to holding discussions with UEFA and FIFA to work together in partnership to deliver the best outcomes for the new League and for football as a whole. The formation of the Super League comes at a time when the global pandemic has accelerated the instability in the existing European football economic model. Further, for a number of years, the Founding Clubs have had the objective of improving the quality and intensity of existing European competitions throughout each season, and of creating a format for top clubs and players to compete on a regular basis."

The website also confirmed that a chairman has been appointed with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez taking that role with Juventus president Andrea Agnelli and Manchester United's Joel Glazer as his vice-presidents. It also revealed that the coronavirus pandemic forced their hand as it showed a need for a “strategic vision and a sustainable commercial approach”.

"The pandemic has shown that a strategic vision and a sustainable commercial approach are required to enhance value and support for the benefit of the entire European football pyramid. In recent months extensive dialogue has taken place with football stakeholders regarding the future format of European competitions. The Founding Clubs believe the solutions proposed following these talks do not solve fundamental issues, including the need to provide higher-quality matches and additional financial resources for the overall football pyramid."

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