The Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union said Thursday that FIFA and UEFA did not violate European law by blocking the creation of the Football Super League by threatening to exclude participating clubs from their competitions.
Greek Athanasios Rantos noted that Super League supporters had the right to organize competitions “outside the UEFA and FIFA ecosystem, but could not continue to participate in competitions organized by FIFA and UEFA without the prior permission of these associations.”
The legal opinions of the Advocates General of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) are non-binding, but they are usually followed by a court based in Luxembourg, whose decision in this case is not due until next year.
The main issue that the CJUE will have to rule on concerns the alleged abuse of UEFA dominance that threatened to punish clubs in the Super League, a closed competition made up of major European clubs and competing with the Champions League.
“European Union competition laws do not prohibit FIFA, UEFA, national associations and leagues from threatening to sanction clubs that are members of these organizations if they are involved in the creation of new competitions that could harm them,” said Athanasios Rantos.
UEFA has already expressed its satisfaction with the “unambiguous position” of the CEU Advocate General, calling it “an encouraging step” towards “maintaining a democratic governance structure” in European football.
“Football in Europe remains united and strongly opposes the Super League project or any other dissident proposal that threatens the European sports ecosystem,” the governing body for sport on the continent said.
The announcement of the creation of the Super League, an elite competition designed to compete with the UEFA Champions League, shook the foundations of football in Europe, but quickly lost momentum in the face of criticism from various sports authorities, national governments.
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atlético de Madrid, Juventus, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham were the founding clubs, but most of them left the boat soon after strong opposition, including from the fans themselves, leaving only Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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