The European Soccer Super League was a proposed annual club football competition that would have featured top European clubs. The concept was officially announced in April 2021 but faced immediate and widespread criticism from fans, players, coaches, governing bodies, and governments.
The original proposal included 12 founding clubs: Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur from England; Atlético Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid from Spain; and AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus from Italy. The league was planned to operate as a closed competition without promotion or relegation, which drew significant opposition.
Within 48 hours of the announcement, all six English clubs withdrew from the project following massive public backlash and threats of sanctions from football governing bodies. The remaining clubs soon followed, leading to the collapse of the initiative.
The proposed Super League raised fundamental questions about the structure of European football, financial distribution, and the relationship between clubs and their local communities. The controversy highlighted the tension between commercial interests and the traditional values of the sport. |
