Real Madrid, the final team remaining in the failed breakaway proposal, and UEFA announced on Wednesday that they had reached a settlement to help settle their legal battle, bringing the European Super League story to a close.
Following the project’s failure, Spanish powerhouse Madrid, whose president Florentino Perez has steadfastly supported the notion of a Super League, and promoters A22 Sports Management were suing European football governing body UEFA for $4 billion in damages.
According to a statement released by Real Madrid and UEFA, “UEFA, the European Football Clubs (EFC, the only, independent body representing football clubs within Europe), and Real Madrid CF reach an agreement for the good of European club football.”
“Once the principles are carried out and put into practice, this agreement will also serve to settle their legal disputes pertaining to the European Super League.”
Real Madrid and UEFA claimed in the statement that they had reached an agreement on “the enhancement of fan experience through the use of technology” and “respecting the principle of sporting merit with emphasis on long-term club sustainability.”
Spanish champions Barcelona said this week that they were leaving the Super League, which was started by 12 clubs in 2021 but soon disbanded due to strong institutional and popular pressure.
The six English clubs engaged in the semi-closed Super League project—Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, Tottenham, and Chelsea—all withdrew shortly after it was revealed.
By 2024, only Barcelona and Real Madrid remained involved when four other clubs—Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan, AC Milan, and Juventus—followed suit.
Following a Spanish court’s decision that FIFA and UEFA, the international and European football governing bodies’ resistance to the Super League “prevented free competition,” Madrid and A22 planned to sue UEFA.
According to an insider who spoke to AFP, Wednesday’s declaration marked “a historic agreement” and the start “of a period of peace” that would be advantageous to all sides.
In 2022, UEFA made the decision to increase the number of Champions League participants to 36 and implement the league phase, which would place all teams in the same table and increase the number of games from six to eight starting in the 2024–2025 season.
