Anti-competitive alarms go off in light of European Super League proposal
What just happened?
The football world had erupted into chaos in a matter of days with big English teams including Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal signing up for the proposed European Super League. The clubs in the proposed Super League will only play against one another in a knockout system. The formation of the Super League comes at a time when the global pandemic has accelerated the instability in the existing European football economic model.[1]
Furthermore, for a number of years, the founding clubs have had the objective of improving the quality and intensity of existing European competitions throughout each season, and of creating a format for top clubs and players to compete on a regular basis.
This has caused a massive uproar from fans of these clubs and football fans in general.
What does this mean?
If the proposal had gone through to fruition, this would have meant that the Super league would become a league for the elite, financially powerful clubs, and other smaller sized clubs in Europe would have practically no hope of joining this league in the future.
Those in support of the ESL argue that the ESL brings economic growth and support to the European football arena. Clubs will receive solidarity payments in line with the competition’s revenue, which are expected to be in excess of €10 billion and substantially higher than from existing competitions. The founding clubs would receive a combined €3.5 billion to support “infrastructure investment plans”[2] and to offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The league would also be free to strike new broadcasting deals with media giants like Disney and Netflix. [3]
How does this impact the legal sector?
The legal impacts that the ESL brings with it outweigh the economic boons. Elitism aside, the proposal reeks of anti-competitive behaviour and could very well go against Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). In a ruling in December 2020, the European Union General Court held that the International Skating Union (ISU) had breached the EU’s competition law by prohibiting athletes from taking part in competitions not sanctioned by the global governing body. UEFA and FIFA, global football governing bodies, have condemned the move to set up the ESL, claiming that a “cynical project founded on the self-interest of a few clubs at a time when society needs solidarity more than ever” in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. [4]
While the ESL is profitable, it goes against freedom to compete in the sporting world, where football teams join based on status and not merit. This lack of meritocracy is appalling, and it is no wonder that the world has fought back against this proposal. Thankfully, the owners and decision-makers of these English clubs have realised the risks of this “league” and have since backed out, leaving the Super League proposal to begin tumbling to its demise.
Written by Nickolaus Ng
Assessing Firms:
#CharlesRussellSpeechlys
Footnotes:
[1] Phillip Andrew Churm, ‘European Super League: UEFA, fans and leaders condemn breakaway competition’ (euronews, 19 April 2021) <www.euronews.com/2021/04/18/uefa-condemns-plans-for-a-european-super-league> Accessed 24 May 2021
[2] BusinessWire ‘Leading European Football Clubs Announce Participation in New Super League Competition’ (BusinessWire, 18 April 2021) <www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210418005053/en/Leading-European-Football-Clubs-Announce-Participation-in-New-Super-League-Competition> Accessed 24 May 2021
[3] Dan Murphy, ‘Streaming giants could win big as soccer community reels over Super League split’ (CNBC, 20th April 2021) <www.cnbc.com/2021/04/20/streaming-giants-could-win-as-soccer-elite-reel-over-super-league-split.html> Accessed 24 May 2021
[4] Ibid [n1]
Disclaimer: This article (and any information accessed through links in this article) is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.