No guarantee Premier League clubs will sign up

Real Betis and Girona FC players and pose for the media with a banner reading 'Earn it on the pitch!' in protest against the Super League plans, before the La Liga match on Thursday. Pic: Fran Santiago/Getty Images

WHAT IS THE EUROPEAN SUPER LEAGUE?

Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus plus nine other European major clubs announced the breakaway ESL — a closed league — in April 2021.

Sports development company A22 assisted with creating the ESL. But the move collapsed within 48 hours after an outcry from fans, governments and players forced Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid to pull out.

WHAT WAS ESL'S CASE AGAINST UEFA?

A22 CEO Bernd Reichart said the ESL wanted to break what he described was a monopoly of competitions run by UEFA, which has organised European competitions for nearly 70 years and sees the ESL as a significant threat.

When the breakaway clubs were threatened with sanctions, the ESL went to court claiming that UEFA and FIFA held a monopoly position which was in breach of the European Union's Competition and Free Movement Law.

Despite nine clubs pulling out, the three holdouts -- Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus -- still hoped to get the ESL up and running. However, Juventus opted to pull out earlier this year when the Italian club's board changed.

Real and Barca took the case to a Spanish court, which subsequently sought guidance from the Luxembourg-based European Court.

WHAT DOES THE RULING MEAN FOR FOOTBALL?

The verdict means European clubs can join another continental league -- without the threat of sanctions -- instead of playing in competitions run solely by UEFA.

Soon after the verdict, A22 released another proposal for new competitions with 64 men's and 32 women's teams playing midweek matches in a league system across Europe.

Although the initial Super League project was a closed competition, the new one would see clubs participate based on sporting merit with no permanent members. The clubs would also stay in their respective domestic leagues.

However, there is no guarantee the Premier League clubs will sign up for the new competition.

Two months after the six English clubs pulled out of the project in 2021, they said they would pay a combined 22 million pounds ($27.78 million) as "a gesture of goodwill".

They face a 30-point deduction if they attempt a similar move in future while the Premier League also said they would each be fined 25 million pounds if they attempt another breakaway.

WHAT DOES THE NEW SUPER LEAGUE PROPOSAL LOOK LIKE?

A22 has pitched what it has described as "open and meritocratic" men's and women's competitions. The men's will feature 64 teams, with 16 each in the Star and Gold Leagues and 32 in the Blue League. Each season, 20 teams will be promoted to the Blue League via domestic performance, though precisely how remains subject to further "work and dialogue", says A22 chief executive Bernd Reichart. The women's competition would feature 32 teams, split evenly between a Star and a Gold League. All leagues would end in an eight-team knockout.