FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, has also spoken out about the court’s verdict on the Super League case.
The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in favour of Super League against FIFA and UEFA on Thursday. The court explained that penalising a club or a player for taking part in this competition breached EU rules. However, this decision does not mean the imminent arrival of Super League. Quite the contrary, as the clubs continue to support UEFA.
Gianni Infantino reacts and attacks
After the strong rebuke from UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin, it was now the turn of FIFA president Gianni Infantino to react. “With the greatest respect for the European Court of Justice, today’s ruling really changes nothing. Historically, we organise the best competitions in the world and this will also be the case in the future… We will continue to organise the most spectacular, most competitive and most significant tournaments in the world and to use our income to develop football in the four corners of the globe through solidarity programmes that guarantee the less privileged the benefit of these high-level competitions. FIFA will continue to do this, as always, in close cooperation with our member associations, confederations and all football stakeholders for the exclusive benefit of our game – on a global scale. All together,” reads a statement on the FIFA website.
UEFA’s reaction
The European Court of Justice dropped quite a bombshell on Thursday with a ruling which, by pointing to the abuse of a dominant position and the hindering of competition by UEFA and FIFA through their threats of sanctions against the Super League project, changes the situation considerably. However, the European body was quick to react. While it acknowledges the ruling and the shortcomings it points to, UEFA refuses to see the decision as opening the door to the creation of a potential Super League.
“UEFA takes note of today’s ruling by the CJEU in the European Super League case.
This decision does not signify an endorsement or validation of the so-called ‘Super League’; rather, it highlights a pre-existing flaw in UEFA’s pre-authorisation framework, a technical aspect that was already recognised and addressed in June 2022. UEFA is confident that its new rules are robust, and in particular that they comply with all relevant European laws and regulations.
UEFA remains steadfast in its commitment to preserving the European football pyramid, ensuring that it continues to serve the wider interests of society. We will continue to collectively shape the European sporting model with national associations, leagues, clubs, fans, players, coaches, EU institutions, governments and partners.
We trust that the pyramid of European football based on solidarity, declared as their irreplaceable model by fans and all stakeholders, will be preserved against the threat of splits by European and national laws.”
Florentino Perez takes a jab
Since the announcement of the decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union, which ruled that the rules imposed by FIFA and UEFA on the creation of new competitions (such as the Super League) were quite simply contrary to European Union law, Real Madrid and Barça have launched hostilities. This morning, Joan Laporta, president of Barça, and Florentino Perez, president of Real Madrid, published videos explaining their decision to take over the Super League project.
Perez, at the helm of the Merengue, spoke for just over a minute in front of… the 14 Champions League titles won by his team, who want to leave UEFA and no longer take part in the Champions League. It’s strange to talk about Super League with UEFA Champions League trophies behind you,” said Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, who also heads the European Club Association (ECA), a UEFA loyalist who is also opposed to Super League.
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