What was the European Super League, and what did the 2023 court ruling say?

The European Super League was a plan, announced on 18 April 2021, for a breakaway competition run by twelve clubs: six English, three Italian and three Spanish. Almost all of them withdrew within days. In December 2023 the European Court of Justice ruled that FIFA and UEFA's rules for blocking rival competitions like it were unlawful, without ruling on the Super League project itself.

Florentino Pérez, the president of Real Madrid, announced the plan. He said he hoped the competition would provide higher-quality matches and additional financial resources for the overall football pyramid, with a long-term commitment to uncapped solidarity payments. The announcement met significant opposition from fans, players, managers and clubs, and from UEFA, FIFA and some national governments. Critics raised concerns about exclusivity and reduced competitiveness, because high-ranking teams from selected countries would be permanent contestants in a semi-closed league.

The collapse was fast. On 20 April 2021 Chelsea signalled its withdrawal after chairman Bruce Buck met with the players, and Manchester City were the first team to formally begin withdrawing. Three days into its founding, nine of the twelve clubs had announced plans to withdraw, leaving Juventus, Barcelona and Real Madrid. UEFA stipulated that clubs returning to the fold must sell their Super League shares, donate €15 million to grassroots football and sign a Commitment Declaration.

The legal fight went on. A Spanish commercial court asked the CJEU whether FIFA and UEFA had violated EU competition law, citing UEFA's position as the sole governing body and income distributor. In December 2022 the advocate general reported that FIFA's and UEFA's regulations were compatible with EU competition law, before the court gave its final judgment. On 21 December 2023 the court ruled that a ban on the ESL could be in conflict with EU regulations: FIFA and UEFA rules making any new interclub competition subject to their prior approval, and banning clubs and players from playing in it, were unlawful, and Reuters reported that the court found the two bodies had abused their dominant position. But the court said that did not mean a competition such as the Super League must necessarily be approved, and UEFA said the ruling was no endorsement of the project.