The soccer landscape was recently rocked when it was announced that some of Europe's largest clubs are planning to form a breakaway Super League. Some of the founding Super League clubs include English powers like Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester City.
Liverpool was the first Super League club to play a domestic game following Sunday night's announcement. Prior to Monday's game between Leeds United and Liverpool, Leeds players called out the Super League and wore t-shirts that read "Earn it. Football is for the fans."
Here's a look:
Illan Meslier of Leeds United warming up for his game against Liverpool (a European Super League founding member) with a shirt that says “#UCL earn it. Football is for the fans.” pic.twitter.com/oBsuKCKG2H
— Nico Cantor (@Nicocantor1) April 19, 2021
Liverpool and Leeds fans also stood outside the stadium on Monday and voiced their disapproval.
Many prominent European soccer voices are against the formation of the Super League.
"I'm focused on different topics, but I can say that the Super League wouldn't be good for European football," Bayern Munich manager Hansi Flick said on Monday.
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As should come as no surprise, the formation of this Super League is adamantly opposed by FIFA and UEFA, who serve as the respective governing bodies for international and European soccer.
If it ends up being established, the Super League would offer permanent spots to some of the biggest clubs in the sport and would feature midweek matches. At the moment, there's 12 founding members of the Super League, but the league is looking to add three more permanent members.
The 12 Super League founding members are as follows:
- Arsenal (currently 9th in EPL)
- Chelsea (currently 5th in EPL)
- Liverpool (currently 6th in EPL)
- Manchester City (currently 1st in EPL)
- Manchester United (currently 2nd in EPL)
- Tottenham Hotspur (currently 7th in EPL)
- Atletico Madrid (currently 1st in La Liga)
- Barcelona (currently 3rd in La Liga)
- Real Madrid (currently 2nd in La Liga)
- AC Milan (currently 2nd in Serie A)
- Inter Milan (currently 1st in Serie A)
- Juventus (currently 4th in Serie A)
It's unclear what the next step is, but UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin could issue a ban for teams that have joined the Super League. According to CBS Sports insider Fabrizio Romano, Ceferin is meeting with his legal team to determine what the next step will be for the governing body.
The decision could have an immediate impact on the Champions League as Chelsea, Manchester City, and Real Madrid are all in the Champions League semifinals, which are set to begin next week.
