European Court Of Justice Hands Landmark Verdict: “FIFA & UEFA Abused Dominant Position, Prohibiting Super League Unlawful”

The European Court of Justice handed a historic ruling on Thursday in the Super League case, serving a major blow to FIFA and UEFA.

In April 2021, twelve elite European clubs launched the controversial European Super League project, including Inter Milan.

But following a raucous popular and political backlash, nine clubs decided to backtrack in the next 48 hours. This includes the six Premier sides as well as the Nerazzurri.

For their part, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus stood as the three remaining rebels, prompting a major legal conflict with FIFA and UEFA.

The European governing body of football threatened the trio with sanctions that could even reach expulsion from all competitions played under its banner (with the most prominent being the Champions League).

Nevertheless, Thursday’s verdict has turned the tide in the Super League’s favor.

While the European Court of Justice didn’t condone the controversial project, its ruling stated that FIFA and UEFA have no right to prohibit the clubs and players from participating in other competitions.

The ECJ stated that the practices of the major governing football bodies were unlawful under European law.

“The FIFA and UEFA rules on prior approval of interclub football competitions, such as the Super League, are contrary to EU law. They are contrary to competition law and the freedom to provide services,” stated the verdict as published by The Independent.

“The FIFA and UEFA rules making any new interclub football project subject to their prior approval, such as the Super League, and prohibiting clubs and players from playing in those competitions, are unlawful. There is no framework for the Fifa and UEFA rules ensuring that they are transparent, objective, non-discriminatory and proportionate.

FIFA & UEFA Receive Major Blow As European Court Of Justice Rules In Favor Of Super League

“Similarly, the rules giving FIFA and UEFA exclusive control over the commercial exploitation of the rights related to those competitions are such as to restrict competition, given their importance for the media, consumers and television viewers in the European Union.”

“That does not mean that a competition such as the Super League project must necessarily be approved. The Court, having been asked generally about the FIFA and UEFA rules, does not rule on that specific project in its judgment.”

It remains to be seen if this new twist will truly shake the landscape of European football.