The Commercial Court number 17 of Madrid will experience today, starting at 10:00, the oral hearing of ‘Case of the Super League’, where the UEFA on the one hand and the boosters of the new continental competition project on the other hand (the company A22 Sports Management SL) will present their arguments about the accusation of monopoly which burdens the body of Europe.
It will be a view of a session, at the end of which it will be seen for judgementwhich, as confirmed by MD, will be known shortly before the next one summer.
This will be first pulse between UEFA and Super League after the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on December 21. Let us remember that the Super League staged a demand supposedly UEFA abuse of position and for opposition to the competition, after the threats made by the European body, with the support of FIFA, to exclude the clubs participating in the new competition organized by UEFA and punish their players.
The Commercial Court of Madrid, where the complaint was filed, then raised a preliminary ruling before the CJEU focused on this alleged position of dominance which the Super League denounced in the order of May 11, 2021 which concluded in the last sentence December 21.
This last decision means that the rules of both institutions (UEFA and FIFA) They are not transparent, objective, non-discriminatory or proportionate. The decision clarified that the current ones are contrary to the right to competition and the EU Treaty. From now on they have to develop new rules. But he did not endorse the Super League, instead urging UEFA and FIFA to be more transparent.
Chronology of the case
April 18, 2021
Twelve clubs -R, Madrid, Barça and At. With them Madrid- announce the agreement to create the Super League starting from the 2021-2022 season.
April 19, 2021
The president of UEFA, Aleksander Ceferin, announced sanctions on the clubs involved: he will ban their players from participating in UEFA competitions.
April 21, 2021
The At. Madrid, three Italian clubs and the English club gave up on the project.
May 7, 2021
UEFA approved reintegration measures for clubs that abandoned the project.
May 25, 2021
UEFA opened disciplinary proceedings against R. Madrid, Barça and Juve.
October 19, 2022
The Super League appointed German Bernd Reichart as general director of A22 Sports, promoter of the project.
November 8, 2022
UEFA accepted the Super League. After the meeting, it assured that “the opposition remains huge” and the Super League, which will “continue to strive to change football”.
December 2, 2022
The Super League ensures that it will be a “meritocratic” competition, with no fixed places.
February 1, 2023
Javier Tebas: “There will be no Super League. “The will of the EU is to defend the current model of sport.”
February 9, 2023
The Super League publishes its principles: an open tournament, based on sporting merits, several divisions, between 60 and 80 clubs and at least 14 games.
April 5, 2023
UEFA President, Aleksander Ceferin: “The Super League is the wolf disguised as a grandmother.”
June 5, 2023
Juve informed R. Madrid and Barça that it is leaving, after the resignation of Andrea Agnelli and the penalty of losing positions in the table, to remain in seventh position in Serie A due to the ‘capital gains case’.
October 24, 2023
The (CJEU) announced that it will make public the decision in the case on December 21.
November 11, 2023
Florentino Pérez maintains that the Super League project is “more necessary than ever” and that “its sole purpose is to strengthen European tournaments with meritocracy. UEFA is going in the opposite direction, towards a model with more matches of little interest, without back-and-forth, with no understanding. “An absurd project.”
December 18, 2023
Laporta said that if the CJEU decides that the position of UEFA and FIFA is contrary to the rules of European competition, the Super League will become a reality in one or two years.
December 21, 2023
For the CJEU, FIFA and UEFA rules on the pre-authorisation of club competitions, such as the Super League, breach EU law. He pointed out that UEFA and FIFA abused their “dominant position” vis-à-vis the Super League, but believed that “a competition like the Super League project should not be allowed.”
The decision refers to UEFA and FIFA regulations that limit the entry of new competitions into the market. AND This rule violates the one that exists in the EU. Both organizations should change these limits or establish clearer ones to avoid Super League promotion.
The decision stated that FIFA and UEFA “are abusing their dominant position“, and “its rules relating to the exploitation of broadcasting rights may harm clubs, all companies operating in broadcast media markets and, finally, consumers and viewers, by preventing them to benefit from new competitions.”
The decision of the CJEU in the Commercial Court number 17 of Madrid concluded that “verify whether these rules can, however, will benefit different groups interest of football, for example, through the harmonious redistribution of income generated by these rights.”
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.
