don’t call him anymore Super League. Not for nothing, but because the idea of a 100% closed competition reserved for the 15 biggest clubs in Europa It has already been stored in the drawer. Or not. If the model that the ECA proposed in 2019 and it has already been ruled out -A22 does not clarify if this is his new idea-, a system of divisions would at least temporarily shield the presence of the big clubs in that European First (Champions League), who would only lose the place if they descend there. It does not matter that in their domestic league they have been able to finish ninth three years in a row. That is where the leagues of the Old Continent collide, since they consider that not offering their champion a place in the elite will reduce their sporting appeal.
But today I would like to focus on another issue. The Super League was initially born with the support of the Big Six from Premier League and it was his retreat that marked the beginning of the end. And not only because they are six of the most attractive teams, but because the United Kingdom is one of the largest audiovisual markets in the world and the most important in Europa, not to mention its importance in attracting global sponsors. That France (PSG) y Germany (FC Bayern) did not enter either, it was a disservice to a business plan that promised extra income that was difficult to justify.
What is surprising now is that, at least the president of the FC Barcelona, John Laporta, raise the need for Super League as a counterweight to the economic power of the English teams and the deregulation that facilitates the constant injections of capital: 3,400 million euros only during the pandemic, almost nine times more than what was captured by LaLiga. It is not understanding that no competition can even replace what today generates the Champions League without having the Anglo-Saxon flank on your side, but the worst thing is to think that it will serve to reduce any income gap.
Because? For the resilience of each competition compared to other tournaments. The Premier has strong local roots and a diversification of audiences that, for example, is not so obvious in LaLigawhere the absence of a more equitable distribution has strengthened the media duopoly of FC Barcelona y Real Madrid. In other words, although Sky o BT Sport they would not stop paying for English football to turn towards the Super Leagueit is more difficult to ensure that there was not a readjustment of the budgets of Telefónica or Dazn in Spain.
If a team from the Premier He charges more than a Spaniard and a German together, it is not a problem of poor management of these or the format of the competition. It is that the size -of the market- matters, and soccer is the most international local product that exists.
Summit of LaLiga Impulse in Port Aventura
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This week an important game in Spanish football will be played, although without cameras to broadcast it, nor footballers on the pitch. LaLiga has summoned all the clubs and their main executives in Port Aventurato analyze over two days the evolution of the investments made after the investment of 1,994 million euros by CVC. In total, more than 350 professionals who will put the sports rivalry aside for a moment to focus on a business that this year is expected to recover pre-pandemic levels, with more than 4,000 million euros in turnover.
The investment firm will have disbursed 1,367 million euros until June among all the clubs, with the exception of Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Athletic Club y UD Ibiza, who are the only ones who rejected the agreement. The first most visible investments are materializing in the stadiums, but precisely these conferences are aimed at understanding how to invest in everything that the fan does not perceive so clearly: digitization, brand, technology, consumer experience… all to close the gap with the Premier League.
