European Super League to be formed? UEFA issues 'ban' threat to clubs intending to join

Amidst reports of the European Super League coming to life on late Sunday night, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has issued a strong-worded statement promising tough sanctions against members of the breakaway faction, if implemented. The European Super League which is being discussed since the 1990s has been reported to be formally announced on Sunday night with major English and Spanish clubs signing their letters of intent to join the new faction. Labelling the proposal as a 'cynical project,' the UEFA has said that it will consider all measures available including 'judicial and sporting' to prevent the formation of the European Super League. 

"As previously announced by FIFA and the six Federations, the clubs concerned will be banned from playing any other competition at domestic, European or world level, and their players could be denied the opportunity to represent their national teams," the UEFA statement reads. 

The UEFA has also expressed gratitude to French and German clubs that have refused to sign up for the breakaway league. As per reports, Champions League title-holders Bayern Munich and last year's finalists Paris Saint-German are amongst the clubs that have rejected the proposal. Throwing weight behind UEFA, the Premier League also issued a statement condemning the European Super League proposal. Asserting that the proposal attacks the principles of 'open competition and sporting merit,' the Premier League said that a European Super League will undermine the appeal of the whole game. 

"A European Super League will undermine the appeal of the whole game, and have a deeply damaging impact on the immediate and future prospects of the Premier League and its member clubs, and all those in football who rely on our funding and solidarity to prosper," the Premier League statement read. Apart from the Premier League, the Royal Spanish Football Federation, LaLiga, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) and the Lega Serie A have stood against the idea of a European Super League. 

What is the European Super League? 

The European Super League is a proposal for the formation of a tournament comprising of football clubs from across Europe as a competitor to the existing Champions League where top-tier teams from across Europe qualify to compete based on their rankings in the domestic league. The idea which has been discussed on several occasions since the 1990s has never been implemented due to the opposition from  FIFA and all the six continental confederations. The proposal has been championed by the President of Real Madrid Florentino Perez. 

The idea floated in 2018 spoke of a 16-team tournament to break away from UEFA and start their own competition. The competition would be similar to the Champions League except UEFA would play no part in the European Super League. Teams would play in a group stage followed by knockout rounds to claim a European Super League champion. According to reports, a European Super League would negatively impact domestic competitions. 

Clubs in the European Super League? 

As per a Dailymail report, the big six of English football have signed letters of intent to join the new European Super League. these include Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham. The report also states that Real Madrid president Florentino Perez will be elected as the chairman of the new league with Liverpool's John W. Henry, Joel Glazer of Manchester United and Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke as vice-chairmen. Apart from the big six PL clubs, Spanish giants Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid and Spain, and Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan from Italy are said to in the fray for the European Super League.