Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus set to revive European Super League plans
According to a report just in by the Telegraph, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus, the three biggest proponents of the European Super League, are set to rejuvenate their plans to form the breakaway European club competition.
After their initial plans were met with immense criticism and apprehension, the ESL project stalled rather rapidly.
However, it never faded away completely, as the presidents of three founding clubs have continued to tinker with the idea to present it differently and ultimately get it accepted.
The biggest change to the competition’s proposed format is now that there will be no permanent members in the ESL, which was the most widely-scrutinised aspect of the initial plans.
Barcelona and Real Madrid presidents Joan Laporta and Florentino Perez, alongside Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli have taken a staunch position that clubs should be in complete administrative control of their own competitions.
As a result, the trio have been locked in a legal tussle with UEFA in a case that is being reviewed by the European Court of Justice. UEFA reportedly consider the issue to be merely an ego problem for those involved.
The three founding clubs are adamant that there will be a shift in power, and the presidents will publicly be able to explain their new ideas before the ECJ delivers its verdict in Luxembourg on the 15th of December.
They will then reopen talks with other European clubs with the improved proposals for the ESL.
While most of the big clubs including the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Spurs among others were hesitant to ever revive the idea, a verdict in favour of the ESL could cause a major change in their decisions.
The next two months will be key in deciding the future of the competition, with a major shake-up to the entire footballing pyramid potentially on the cards.