UEFA, FIFA’s ban on Super League unlawful, EU court rules

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has declared unlawful the decision of UEFA and FIFA to ban clubs from joining the European Super League.

The CJEU passed the ruling in a sitting on Thursday.

The creation of the Super League was announced in April 2021 by Florentino Perez, Real Madrid President, with twelve clubs as founding members.

The development spurred uproar from all quarters, and a mass exodus of the founding clubs ensued, but Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus remained resolute in its possibility and approached the court.

Subsequently, UEFA and FIFA moved swiftly to ban clubs from joining the new competition, while threatening sanctions.

In the latest ruling, CJEU stated that the ban from the football governing bodies is contrary to competition law and the freedom to provide services, adding that they are “abusing a dominant position”.

The court stated that, although UEFA and FIFA organise competitions in conjunction with other football associations, football competitions are economic activities that should also respect European laws of freedom of movement.

“The Court observes that the organisation of interclub football competitions and the exploitation of the media rights are, quite evidently, economic activities,” the CJEU started.

“They must therefore comply with the competition rules and respect the freedoms of movement, even though the economic pursuit of sport has certain specific characteristics, such as the existence of associations having certain regulatory and control powers and the power to impose sanctions.”

The court, however, noted that the new football project “must not necessarily be approved by UEFA” but declined to rule on the subject.

FIFA AND UEFA’S RESPONSES

In a statement following the ruling, UEFA said the decision did not signify an endorsement of the Super League, adding that the decision “rather underscores a pre-existing shortfall within UEFA’s pre-authorisation framework”.

“This ruling does not signify an endorsement or validation of the so-called ‘super league’; it rather underscores a pre-existing shortfall within UEFA’s pre-authorisation framework, a technical aspect that has already been acknowledged and addressed in June 2022,” the statement reads.

“UEFA is confident in the robustness of its new rules, and specifically that they comply with all relevant European laws and regulations.”

FIFA said it would analyse the decision in coordination with UEFA, other confederations and the member associations before making further comment.