The promoter of the Super League’s latest proposed iteration is confident that it will receive authorisation from Uefa to proceed with its plan in the new year.
In what has become an unlikely Christmas tradition, A22 resurfaced on Tuesday with plans for a rebranded Unify League almost exactly a year after unveiling its previous concept for the breakaway project. It believes that a refined product, comprising four leagues and 96 clubs in its men’s edition, would negate previous objections and satisfy the criteria for formal permission to go ahead.
Should authorisation be granted, clubs could essentially be given a choice between competing in Uefa’s existing European tournaments and jumping into the unknown with A22. The Guardian understands Uefa is unlikely to respond in haste and that authorising the league, essentially calling A22’s bluff and determining how many clubs are ready to join its competition, will be an option under consideration.
A22 believes Uefa will take that course of action and, should it refuse to, it would be forced to comply by European law. Uefa blocked the formation of a deeply controversial 12-team Super League in 2021, with A22 subsequently taking it to court for abusing a dominant position. Last December a judgment from the European court of justice (CJEU) found Uefa’s and Fifa’s rules for authorising new competitions were contrary to EU law; Uefa’s rules were amended before that ruling and it now believes they adhere.
Now A22 has tested Uefa’s interpretation of those rules with a plan for “Star” and “Gold” leagues of 16 teams each, supported by “Blue” and “Union” leagues of 32 apiece. The 32-team women’s competition will involve “Star” and “Gold” leagues. The divisions would be split into groups of eight, with matches played home and away. Each league would hold an eight-team knockout stage to determine its champion.
There would be no promotion or relegation but, in a tweak regarded as crucial, access would be based on annual performance in domestic leagues. It is unclear whether this would allow the degree of mobility sought by many across Europe for bigger clubs from leagues outside the “big five”, who are all but excluded from fighting for Champions League honours nowadays.
A22 believes that, to its potential benefit, any interested clubs will not have to worry about sanctions if the Unify League is officially recognised by Uefa. Nor, since the CJEU ruling, can clubs be threatened with punishment for simply holding discussions with A22. This could mean clubs like Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham, Manchester United and Manchester City – who all joined the failed 2021 breakaway – can join this time without the £25m fine and 30-point deduction that the Premier League had agreed to impose for any future attempt. All six clubs did, however, state after the CJEU ruling that they would not participate in future A22 schemes.
Privately, senior figures within Uefa hold deep scepticism about the plan’s viability. There is a level of weariness that this subject is on the table yet again. A22 says it would fund the Unify League by creating a global streaming platform that would let fans watch games for free with adverts, or for a fee without, but evidence that this would be feasible remains scarce.
“We are communicating with a sufficient number of clubs to align with the idea of the tournament,” said Bernd Reichart, the CEO of A22, who admitted a start date in 2025 would be unlikely. “We’ve gathered the opinions of a wide range of football world representatives. This is a project of the clubs.” However, only Real Madrid are known to be unequivocally behind the concept and most clubs saw the fresh Unify League plan in its entirety for the first time when it was unveiled. It would be a huge stretch to say A22 has a full complement of participants ready to play if the plan were ratified this week.
Other bodies within European football made their views clear on A22’s return to the fray. “Once again, A22 has presented yet another model of the failed European Super League,” part of a La Liga statement said. “The project continues to lack support from clubs, federations, players, fans, national governments and European institutions.”
Alex Muzio, president of the Union of European Clubs and the owner of the Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise, described the concept as “poorly constructed and poorly conceived”. He questioned whether it would, as A22 has trumpeted, eradicate meaningless games and confirmed his own club was committed to Uefa competitions.
