On Thursday, A22, a sports development organization established to help create the European Super League for soccer, suggested a new tournament that would see 64 men’s and 32 women’s clubs play midweek games in a league system around Europe.
A22 CEO Bernd Reichart stated during a presentation on YouTube that supporters will be able to watch games for free on a platform focused on the needs of fans, but he declined to name any teams that may be a part of the new league.
The idea was made public shortly after the European Court of Justice declared that FIFA and UEFA, the entities that regulate soccer, had broken EU law by impeding the creation of a Super League, which was set to debut in 2021.
“This vision is based on extensive consultation with a wide range of football stakeholders across Europe and built on our core principles,, including participation based on sporting merit (and) no permanent members,” A22 stated.
“Taking part teams remain in their home leagues, which continue to be the cornerstone of European football.
“Now that clubs can determine their own future at European level, we look forward to further engagement with a broad set of football stakeholders to achieve the objective of all great sporting competitions.”
The Champions League, UEFA’s premier club tournament, would be in jeopardy from the Super League competition.
The men’s tournament is slated to include 64 teams divided into three leagues: Star, Gold, and Blue. The Blue League will feature 32 clubs, while the Star and Gold Leagues will have 16.
Teams will play an eight-game home-and-away series for at least 14 games annually. Teams can qualify for the Blue League depending on their performance in their home league, and there will be yearly promotions and relegations between levels.
There would be two leagues of sixteen clubs each for the women’s competition.
CLUB PARTICIPATION
Clubs will be invited to help develop the new competition, according to Reichart. “Our proposal has to be convincing and we invite clubs to shape and help shape this proposal,” he stated.
“Our goal is to engage and involve as many clubs as we can. There are groups who would really like to learn more and become involved with our plan.”
Recalling that watching Champions League matches had grown too costly, Reichart intended to broadcast the games for free.
“Our proposals are a fan-centric platform that brings together clubs and fans like never before,” he stated.
Investors will support us during the platform’s development and launch, so we are contacting you to protect this common goal.
“This is a unique opportunity to rethink how football is presented to the fans.”
All six English Premier League teams participating in the previous effort to create a new league withdrew in response to strong opposition.
Reichart clarified that the new plans were meant to bring clubs together rather than cause conflict and that they posed no danger to national leagues.
“It’s open; it’s meritocratic; it’s accessible,” he stated. “The freedom to dream is more alive today than it has likely ever been. Thus, the pillars of our plan are meritocracy, openness, and unity.”
Reichart said more clubs will be able to compete in Europe thanks to the new league.
“At the moment, clubs can perform extremely well at the European level, yet they will still not be in the same competition the subsequent year,” he stated. “This is viewed as unfair and not consistent with the concept of sporting merit.”
