Barcelona & Real Madrid consider legal action against UEFA & FIFA after latest Super League ruling
- European Court of Justice ruled UEFA & FIFA can't stop clubs from joining Super League
- Legal action could see clubs move to recover £1bn in losses from failed project
- Barcelona president recently named clubs supposedly interested in joining; Roma among those to immediately dismiss claims
By Tom Gott, Ben Jacobs
Barcelona and Real Madrid could take legal action against UEFA and FIFA after the European Court of Justice’s recent Super League ruling, 90min understands.
The court determined in late December that UEFA and FIFA held an anti-competitive position giving European Super League organisers hope of getting their project off the ground; although FIFA and UEFA are adamant the ruling was not one-sided or a 'win' for the European Super League.
However, following the ruling, sources have confirmed to 90min that both Barcelona and Madrid, the two clubs remaining from the project's initial collapse in 2021, are considering suing UEFA and FIFA for damages caused by the failure to launch.
The Super League project was initially funded by a loan from J.P. Morgan worth close to £4bn, but the speedy collapse, and time passed since, has now altered the market terms of any new loan and the old funds are not available.
Under the original terms, founding members would have received around £1bn as a so-called 'joining bonus'. Barcelona and Real Madrid are exploring whether they are entitled to any compensation.
Any legal action, should it arise, would not be led by Super League officials or A22, the promoters of the ESL, but rather the individual clubs, or even players, involved in the original proposal.
Barcelona and Madrid have remained supportive, whereas fellow founders Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, AC Milan, Inter and Atletico Madrid have all distanced themselves. Juventus are exploring leaving the project as well.
It is understood that Super League officials are pushing ahead with their plans to create a new competition and A22 are speaking to clubs privately in the hope of drumming up interest without drawing any public attention.
A22 co-founder Anas Laghrari recently claimed to have received support from close to 20 clubs, declining to name them for privacy reasons, but that stance was not shared by Barcelona president Joan Laporta, who openly listed teams which had allegedly thrown their support behind the project.
Several of the clubs named by Laporta, including Serie A side Roma, quickly released statements to deny holding any talks and stress their desire to continue without the Super League.
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