Just when it seemed to have gone away for good, the European Super League (ESL) is back in the news again.
Two and a half years ago, the initial ESL proposal came out of the blue with 12 of Europe's biggest clubs - six from England, three from Spain and three from Italy - going all in before most backed down in the face of enormous opposition from stakeholders and, more importantly, the fans.
However, A22, the organisation behind the plans is back with a fresh take on the concept. Here we explain the latest developments and what happens next.
Why is the ESL back?
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg ruled that Fifa and Uefa had "abused a dominant position" and had acted unlawfully by threatening the Super League founder clubs and, potentially, their players with sanctions and bans from their competitions.
The ECJ called Fifa and Uefa's rules "harmful" to clubs, media companies and fans and they amounted to a restriction of trade.
Just hours after Thursday's ruling was released, a new ESL proposal was announced by A22.
What is the new proposal?
A22 chief executive Bernd Reichart declared: "The Uefa monopoly is over. Football is free."
The group had clearly listened to the complaints last time about there being no promotion or relegation and about barriers to entry. "There will be promotion and relegation and there will be access from domestic competitions on sporting merit," Reichart told the BBC. "We are open and democratic. We have to talk to clubs and leagues."
The new idea is for 64 men's teams split across three divisions, 32 women's teams split across two. No clubs were named but "guaranteed revenues" were mentioned, plus increased solidarity payments for those not involved, and all the games aired for free on a new digital streaming platform.
Who are A22 and who else is involved?
The two remaining super clubs pushing the project forwards are La Liga giants Barcelona and Real Madrid. A22 are a sports management company who, according to their website, were "formed to sponsor and assist in the creation of a new European Super League". They say "club football at European level requires fresh thinking and can be meaningfully improved incorporating a profound respect for the game's traditions". They are based in, you guessed it... Madrid.
What are Uefa and Fifa saying?
Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin and European Club Association (ECA) chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi, also chairman of non-Super League Paris Saint-Germain, dismissed the new plan.
"What they are proposing is even more closed than the 2021 plan that was rejected by everyone," said Ceferin. "We will not try to stop them. They can create whatever they want. I hope they start their fantastic competition as soon as possible, with two clubs."
Al-Khelaifi added: "Who are A22? Where have they come from? What is their history? What is their profile? We want to talk to serious people."
Fifa president Gianni Infantino said he felt "nothing has changed".
Given the Champions League will feature a new expanded group stage next season, and the creation of a joint venture between the ECA and Uefa on commercial matters, Uefa feel they are in a strong position.
What are the clubs saying?
The Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ have all now distanced themselves from the possibility of joining.
Real Madrid and Barcelona, key supporters of the 2021 project, are driving the revamped project. Juventus and AC Milan, also two of the original 12, have not commented yet but Inter Milan have strongly rejected it, so too have Spanish club Atletico Madrid.
The president of Italian champions Napoli, Aurelio De Laurentiis, said his club was ready to hold talks over the new project. Napoli were not part of the 2021 breakaway.
The Saudi-led takeover of Newcastle means the Premier League probably now has a ‘Big Seven’, but their manager Eddie Howe said he was against the idea of a Super League. "I’d probably say I’m against it if you want a clear decision because I like the structure as it is,” he said.
What happens next?
Thursday's ruling did not give approval to a Super League and said that if A22 want to run a competition under Uefa's jurisdiction, it had to apply to them for authorisation. Uefa, though, can no longer reject the idea out of hand as they did previously.
The main issue for the new scheme, however, is that there is precious little wider support.
In England, the opprobrium of the fans was telling, and there now seems little appetite for change given the financial advantages the clubs already enjoy from their bumper TV deal. An independent regulator is also on the horizon and that could further block any moves to defect. It also seems France and Italy are looking at ways to introduce legislation stopping their clubs from joining.
Should any clubs feel strongly enough to try and join the project but find their path blocked, then you'd imagine it would very quickly end up back in court.
But the power seems very much in the hands of Uefa and existing leagues and competitions.
The French Minister of Sports, Amelie Oudea-Castera, said on X, formerly Twitter, that these latest developments could prompt fresh EU law to codify the structure of European football.
"The Super League project goes against the values that France holds for professional sport on a national and European scale," she said. "Its attempt at reactivation, based on a hasty and biased reading of the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union rendered today, has begun to lead to a unanimous reaction from European countries and stakeholders concerned to block it."
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Haltia.ai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Arto%20Bendiken%20and%20Talal%20Thabet%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20AI%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2041%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20About%20%241.7%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self%2C%20family%20and%20friends%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Where can I submit a sample?
Volunteers can now submit DNA samples at a number of centres across Abu Dhabi. The programme is open to all ages.
Collection centres in Abu Dhabi include:
- Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)
- Biogenix Labs in Masdar City
- Al Towayya in Al Ain
- NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City
- Bareen International Hospital
- NMC Specialty Hospital, Al Ain
- NMC Royal Medical Centre - Abu Dhabi
- NMC Royal Women’s Hospital.
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
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Company name: Farmin
Date started: March 2019
Founder: Dr Ali Al Hammadi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: AgriTech
Initial investment: None to date
Partners/Incubators: UAE Space Agency/Krypto Labs
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 247hp at 6,500rpm
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Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 7.8L/100km
Price: from Dh94,900
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Iraq negotiating over Iran sanctions impact
- US sanctions on Iran’s energy industry and exports took effect on Monday, November 5.
- Washington issued formal waivers to eight buyers of Iranian oil, allowing them to continue limited imports. Iraq did not receive a waiver.
- Iraq’s government is cooperating with the US to contain Iranian influence in the country, and increased Iraqi oil production is helping to make up for Iranian crude that sanctions are blocking from markets, US officials say.
- Iraq, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, pumped last month at a record 4.78 million barrels a day, former Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi said on Oct. 20. Iraq exported 3.83 million barrels a day last month, according to tanker tracking and data from port agents.
- Iraq has been working to restore production at its northern Kirkuk oil field. Kirkuk could add 200,000 barrels a day of oil to Iraq’s total output, Hook said.
- The country stopped trucking Kirkuk oil to Iran about three weeks ago, in line with U.S. sanctions, according to four people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they aren’t allowed to speak to media.
- Oil exports from Iran, OPEC’s third-largest supplier, have slumped since President Donald Trump announced in May that he’d reimpose sanctions. Iran shipped about 1.76 million barrels a day in October out of 3.42 million in total production, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
- Benchmark Brent crude fell 47 cents to $72.70 a barrel in London trading at 7:26 a.m. local time. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was 25 cents lower at $62.85 a barrel in New York. WTI held near the lowest level in seven months as concerns of a tightening market eased after the U.S. granted its waivers to buyers of Iranian crude.
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- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Director Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Denzel Washington, Bill Pullman, Melissa Leo, Ashton Sanders
Three stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
