Reports: Leaked E-Mails Claim Gaggle Of Elite Clubs Are Plotting To Break Away And Form ‘European Super League’

Chris Wright

3rd, November 2018

6 Comments

Embed from Getty Images

German newspaper Der Spiegel claim to have intercepted a batch of e-mails that a gaggle of the biggest clubs in Europe are planning to break off to form a “super league”.

Yes, this old chestnut again.

According to the sort-of-semi-explosive report, private information obtained via Football Leaks shows that Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Manchester United are involved in the plan.

Specifically, the plan entails the 17 clubs with the strongest TV presences in Europe remove themselves from the Champions League and compete permanently amongst each other in a separate “elite” league that operates outside UEFA jurisdiction.

Real Madrid chose to follow a path that was rather unusual in the world of ego-driven, competitive football: Together with six other top clubs, the Spaniards assembled a kind of task force that would look into the establishment of a Super League.

In the months that followed, Real, Bayern, Juventus, Barcelona, Manchester United, Arsenal and Milan would go behind the backs of UEFA and the other clubs to work together to also develop an option for leaving the national leagues and their football associations behind entirely.

It’s also claimed that there would be no threat of relegation for the 11 founder members of this mega-league, making even more anodyne, pointless and devoid of integrity than it already sounds.

For the record, Bayern have already issued a statement to “clearly reject” the rumblings, asserting that they are “unaware” of plans for any Super League and have “taken no part” in any discussion on the subject.

Pies’ two-penneth on the matter? If these conglomerate clubs truly, truly want to form a Super League, then let them. Let them all sail off to their Elysian Football Field of unending rights agreements and boundless sponsorship deals, into an oblivion of disinterest and detached indifference. They won’t be missed. Not really.

Disenchanted fans can always start anew, however begrudgingly. Life/football finds a way.

Elsewhere in Der Spiegel’s various leakages, it’s alleged that UEFA president Gianni Infantino helped both Man City and PSG to navigate Financial Fair Play by advising them how to avoid the harshest possible FIFA sanctions for breaches – allegations FIFA have already vehemently denied.

If this news of elite-level football being a complete and utter cesspit of (alleged) corruption and increasing ineptitude has come as a revelation to you, then we commend you on your Herculean commitment to mind-altering substances.

Posted in Champions League

Share this article: Email

6 Comments

  1. Straight Dave says:

    Man City must be keeping their fingers crossed that this comes to fruition. They might actually be in with a shout of winning the Champion’s League if it happens

  2. Haywired says:

    Aside from all the obvious reasons of how ridiculous this would be, I don’t really see how these clubs would benefit from it. Why would you want to make life harder for yourself? As it is now, they have a strong chance every year of winning a league title and a smaller but still decent chance of winning the Champions League. With this setup they basically only have the second option. Why would a club like Juventus or Bayern Munich want to go from winning league titles on a consistent basis, racking up trophies year after year and thus being seen around the world as an elite, winning, popular club, to going year after year winning nothing, possibly ever again. I mean, if this European Super League had been going for the past 30 years or whatever, Juventus would go from being a huge, dominant, elite club, that’s won title after title after title, to just “that team that hasn’t won a trophy since 1996”. Not great for the “global brand”, etc.

    • Maria says:

      My understanding from reading the linked report is that the teams would not stop competing domestically. Instead they would just no longer take part in the CL and play ‘Super League’ fixtures on these nights.

      I wonder what the players would make of this. Would they rather be competing for and winning the CL or a Super League?

  3. Jim says:

    Just a power play to put pressure on the UEFA for reforms. This will never happen.

  4. lolo says:

    @hywired Juventus can easily compete with those clubs in the last years they constatly reach quarterfinals/semi-finals and 2 finals of CL

Leave a Reply to Maria