Fifteen of Europe’s biggest clubs are in talks to launch a European Super League, scheduled to start in time for the 2023-24 season, with a $ 6 billion (£ 4.3 billion) fund supporting the project, they said. stated sources for ESPN.
If successful, the threat would threaten the existence of the Champions League – the biggest club competition in football – UEFA will announce on Monday a new format of 36 teams for the tournament designed to prevent attempts by the biggest clubs in the game to break away.
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As reported by The Times, the top English clubs Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham are among the 11 European teams that have signed up for the Super League plan.
But a person familiar with the plan was told by ESPN that the proposed framework involves a total of 20 teams, with 15 permanent members who cannot be demoted.
Another five teams will be rotated in and out of the competition, depending on performance, but permanent members will include six clubs in the Premier League, three in La Liga, three in Italian Serie A, two in the Bundesliga and one in French League 1. .
Sources told ESPN that New York investment bank JP Morgan will underwrite the $ 6 billion project distributed as loans to teams.
Under pressure from the European Club Association (ECA), UEFA has drawn up plans to reform the Champions League format, with the new competition set to be unveiled on Monday ahead of the UEFA Executive Committee summit in Switzerland this week.
Scheduled to take effect in 2024, the redesigned Champions League will involve 36 teams playing 10 group games, rather than six. The biggest clubs would also receive an increased share of prizes.
Sources said UEFA intends to continue launching their announcement on Monday, with ESPN being informed that any separatist league remains a distant prospect, with national associations, UEFA and FIFA having to sanction the proposal.
Meanwhile, Serie A convened an emergency council meeting on Sunday to discuss a newspaper report, saying the DAZN broadcaster is involved in new plans for the separatist league, a source told Reuters.
The meeting was convened by the president of the league Paolo Dal Pino and the Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport reported that DAZN, which is owned by Access Industries, the billionaire Len Blavatnik, has been working for some time to form the league.
The report claims that the meeting participates remotely, with the three clubs in Serie A that could be part of the new project – Juventus, Inter Milan and AC Milan.
A tumultuous week for Serie A is coming to an end after seven clubs submitted a written request for Dal Pino to resign due to problems, including the management of his plans to sell a stake in the league’s media business.
Plans will also face opposition from supporters – currently unable to react to talks inside stadiums due to COVID-19 security protocols – ESPN reported last week that fan groups have already been outraged about UEFA’s changes in Champions League.
Reuters information was also included in this report.