Case questions and answers Super Leaguethat the trial will take place this Thursday in the court of Mercantile number 17 of Madriddue to the complaint of the promoters of the competition, which promotes the Real Madrid and Barcelonaagainst UEFA and FIFA for abuse of dominant position by preventing its implementation.
– What is the Super League?
The Spanish clubs Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid, the Italians Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus and the English Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham – announced on April 18, 2021 the creation of a new competition ( Super League ) from the 2021-2022 season, due to the instability of the economic model of European football due to the pandemic.
The format is provided for up to 20 participating teams: the founders, three more guests – including PSG – and five other teams that will be classified annually based on their performance.
The provision of funds was seen in a letter in which JP Morgan AG committed to providing ESLC, through a bridge loan, for a maximum of almost 4 billion euros.
On December 21, the Super League was presented as a free, open competition, with 64 participants in three groups, promotions and relegation, and also in a women’s tournament, with 32 clubs, which were not included at the beginning .
– What is judged?
On April 20, 2021, the Commercial Court number 17 of Madrid accepted the lawsuit from A22 Sports Management SL and European Super League Company SL – promoters of the Super League – and adopted the precautionary measures requested to prevent UEFA , FIFA and the national federations will take disciplinary measures during the procedure.
The lawsuit seeks a declaration that UEFA and FIFA abused their dominant position in violation of Article 102 of the TFEU, by giving themselves the discretionary power to prohibit participation in alternative competitions despite the conflict of interest and the by forcing the clubs and potential Super Liga to assign the exploitation rights of the competitions in which they participate.
To also resolve that they prevent free competition in the market by imposing unreasonable and disproportionate restrictions on the Super League in violation of article 101 of the TFEU and order that they stop the anti-competitive behavior described and prohibit their future repetition.
– The parts
. European Super League Company SL (ESL): Private law firm residing in Spain, established at the initiative of the clubs Atlético de Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham .
. A22 Sports Management, SL: Private law firm resident in Spain. It is presented as a company that provides services related to the creation and management of professional football competitions, and more specifically the Super League project.
They were advised by the firm Clifford Chance SLP, along with Belgian lawyer Jean Louis Dupont, architect of the Bosman ruling, which declared foreign quotas at clubs for EU citizens and transfer compensation illegal.
. Uefa: Private Law Association based in Switzerland.
According to its Statutes (art. 49), it will only be competent to organize or suppress international competitions in Europe in which member federations and/or their clubs participate.
Article 51 thereof states that UEFA members or the leagues or clubs affiliated to them may not play or organize matches outside their own territory without the consent of the respective member federations .
. LaLiga and the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF): The court admitted the appearance of the two, considering their legitimate interest in the method and connection with its objective to be justified.
A report prepared by LaLiga in collaboration with KPMG on the economic damage it will cause to the national leagues indicates that Spanish clubs other than Real Madrid and Barcelona will lose up to 55% of their income if the project comes to fruition.
Spanish bosses denounced the Supeliga as an attempt to deceive, that it was a closed model; that its implementation would cause domestic leagues to lose at least 69% of their audiovisual revenue and that it would destroy the entire ecosystem that directly employs 68,000 footballers, more than 3,000 coaches and 75,000 club workers.
. FIFA: Private law association based in Switzerland. According to its laws, its purpose is to “organize its own international competitions, develop provisions and regulations governing football and everything related to this sport and guarantee their application, and control all forms of football, adopting appropriate or recommended measures to prevent violation of the Laws.
The case is in procedural default for failure to appear as a co-defendant within the deadline.
– Jurisprudence:
After receiving the lawsuit, the Madrid court went to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to determine whether there was an abuse of the dominant position of UEFA and FIFA according to the TFEU.
The Advocate General of the CJEU, the Greek Athanasios Rantos, concluded on December 15, 2022, in a null report, that FIFA and UEFA did not abuse their dominant position by blocking the creation of a tournament with the threat of penalties. alternative.
A year later, on December 21, 2023, the Grand Chamber affirmed that the rules of UEFA and FIFA constitute an abuse of a dominant position if they are not “subject to material criteria and procedural rules that ensures their clear, objective nature. , non-discriminatory and proportionate”, in accordance with articles 101, 102 and 56 of the TFEU.
In order to comply with these orders, according to the court, it is necessary to communicate them in an easy way, before any application of said rules; that in order not to be discriminatory, they do not subject the organization and marketing to requirements different from those applicable to competitions organized by UEFA, or impossible to comply with, and that the possible sanctions comply with the principle of proportionality.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
