January 28, 2021
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The plans for a European football super league are not new. They have been lying in the drawers of various big clubs for years and keep appearing with great regularity.
In times of the corona pandemic, which is causing the clubs a massive loss of income (spectators, merchandising, etc.), it is not surprising that this is already being discussed again.
Big clubs are for the introduction of the super league
Juventus President Andrea Agnelli is a vehement supporter: “1826 games in the five best leagues in Europe are a flaw in the current system compared to only 125 games in the Champions League. That means the clubs are not maximizing their potential revenue stream, ”said Agnelli. As chairman of the European Club Association (ECA), his word naturally carries weight.
Leagues and associations are against Superliga
But the resistance is great. Only recently, the European football association UEFA and the world association FIFA had refused to recognize a possible super league in a joint statement and threatened to ban clubs and players from competitions. Resistance is also forming in the national leagues, not just in the smaller countries: Javier Tebas, President of Spain’s La Liga, believes the plans are a “disaster” and a “shot in the own knee”.
Because the elite competition would “by destroying the national leagues not only ruin football in general, but also those clubs that are their advocates,” Tebas told Reuters. “The clubs are not aware that such a radical break will harm them in the medium and long term.”
Only the exorbitant salaries would rise
He’s right about that. Because one thing is clear: the selected few participants – we’re always talking about a closed system with around 18 clubs such as Juventus, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Paris SG, Manchester United or Liverpool – are all about even more Make money.
But what for? The past has shown that the more money you spend in football, the higher the players’ salaries. They rise exorbitantly, otherwise nothing changes. But especially at the clubs mentioned, not only do the superstars like Lionel Messi (35 million euros net annually / without advertising contracts) or Cristiano Ronaldo (31 million) earn princely, but all the squad players. For example, FC Barcelona broke the sound barrier two years ago by being the first club to pay each player an average of more than ten million euros, namely 11.3 million. Basic salary, mind you – there were also bonuses.
Big clubs are already dominating at will
So again the question of why? What is the point of making the top clubs even richer? They already dominate the national championships almost at will, they already have the means to weaken their competitors at any time by poaching the best players. You can already afford the most expensive and thus also the largest and most balanced squad.
And these top clubs also forget that the backbone of professional football is the national leagues, that there the players are brought up to the highest level. That the David vs. Goliath duel, which is often so interesting in football, would de facto not exist in a super league. And that football is not an elitist sport for a few, but a super league would rule out many clubs and practically all leagues apart from the big five (England, Spain, Germany, Italy, France).
For football, it is to be hoped that at the end of this ordeal, common sense will stand and that the European association will not buckle either.
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