The main complaint of coaches and managers in this strange, compressed season of the pandemic has been about how little time they have between fixtures. Well, nothing has been quite as breathless as what was billed as the vision of football’s glamorous future: An entire competition launched and finished off within 48 hours.
The dramatic rise and collapse of the mutinous European Super League, ESL, unveiled on Sunday and already shedding signed-up members on Tuesday, leaves few clear winners and a number of red-faced losers.
In the medium-term, it has clearly shifted power at the elite end of football. The so-called rebels, the nine clubs who joined Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus in announcing they were forming their own 20-team, mostly ‘closed’ league to effectively supersede Uefa’s Champions League quickly learned a huge mass of supporters are deeply hostile to the idea, and their voices cannot be dismissed.
Uefa meanwhile have come through the drama looking like first-leg winners, fortified by the knowledge that the next rebellion by the superclubs wanting more control, and more money, from elite competitions will need to be much better organised and appealing in the way it is set out.
Supporters will feel victorious, too. The degree of resistance from fans took the six English would-be ESL members - United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Spurs - by surprise. One senior executive from a Premier League club used the word “uprising”. It looked and sounded like one. On Tuesday night, Chelsea were drafting their formal statement to say they would withdraw from the project once fans gathered, chanting against the ESL outside the club’s Stamford Bridge stadium ahead of the fixture against Brighton.
By the end of the night their fellow Premier League clubs had all withdrawn from ESL, alarmed by the vivid rejection of the idea by fans and by a UK government threatening legislation to corral the national sport into line. Backed by government, the English Football Association warned they were ready to throw the six rebels out of the Premier League.
Two of the Italian trio enlisted in ESL, AC Milan and Internazionale then stepped back by lunchtime Wednesday, and Juventus president Andrea Agnelli, a ringleader, acknowledged: "I don't think the project is up and running." Atletico Madrid withdrew, leaving just La Liga's Real Madrid and Barcelona as valid signatures on a prospective Super League that, when it was optimistically unveiled on Sunday evening, was signalling a possible start date of this August.
Significantly, Madrid and Barca are the two clubs involved whose presidents are elected by their season-ticket holders; Madrid’s Florentino Perez, who is chairman of ESL, and Joan Laporta, of Barcelona, can legitimately say they speak for and act for fans, or at least have a clear mandate to do so. Laporta had taken the precaution of saying his club’s engagement with ESL would depend on Barcelona members voting to approve it at a future general assembly.
By contrast, the vociferous line of criticism towards the English clubs who committed to the breakaway league is that their club owners and decision-makers had ignored, or utterly misunderstood, supporters. Under particular fire are the American-based stakeholders at United, Arsenal and Liverpool, for signing up to a proposed competition that removed jeopardy from its structure - no founder member of ESL could ever be relegated.
Some major sports in the US operate with ‘closed’ leagues like that, where clubs or franchises are permanent members, however poorly they perform in a season. But football has developed into the world’s most popular game on the principle of the pyramid, a hierarchy where promotion or relegation are constants. The current Champions League is part of that: Teams reach it by securing a high place in their domestic leagues.
"There are things in football that should not be changed," commented the Barcelona coach, Ronald Koeman on the Super League's flawed structure, echoing Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola's remark that "it is not sport if you can't lose".
But Koeman added: “It’s only natural that club presidents think about the future.” Barcelona’s president Laporta is one of those deeply concerned about falling revenues - because of the pandemic, and because of plateauing income from broadcast rights - and who found the sums that ESL boasted it could bring to clubs extremely attractive. A grant of €3.5 million ($3.9bn) was promised to spread among the 15 ‘Founder Clubs’; Barcelona have an overall debt of over €1bn, around €400m of which needs urgent attention.
Fans, national governments, Uefa and Fifa may have put the brakes on the supposed ESL financial bonanza, but the impulse that drove the idea of a breakaway will not subside. The question now is how and when the impulse resurfaces.
There are already other versions of an elite cross-border league being drawn up, although they are within the sport’s existing governing structures. The Champions League will expand from 2024, and Uefa have tabled a proposal to favour established superclubs by offering two places in its new, 36-club group phase to be awarded, each year, according to past performance, not a club’s position in the previous domestic league season. The mechanism had been designed to appease wealthier clubs’ fears of missing out. Now that most of those clubs have plotted openly against Uefa the idea may be withdrawn.
Meanwhile, Fifa sense their expanded Club World Cup, which was, until the Covid crisis, to have taken place this summer in China, will now have fuller support from big clubs whose efforts at a breakaway have flopped. Fifa is offering a glamorous alternative: a 24-club tournament that would feel like a World Cup, except its glamour fixtures would not be the likes of Brazil against Germany, but Real Madrid against Manchester United, Juventus against Barcelona, or Manchester City against Liverpool.
Eight European clubs will take part in the Club World Cup - qualifying, in principle, via their achievements in the Champions League or Europa League - along with South American clubs, and clubs qualifying from the Asian, African and North American pyramid.
The tournament may come to look very much like a Super League - but with the important distinction that there is no closing off the possibility of, say, a Boca Juniors versus Barcelona semi-final, or, equally, a Manchester United versus Al Jazira.
Ultra processed foods
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
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
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP FIXTURES
September 30
South Africa v Australia
Argentina v New Zealand
October 7
South Africa v New Zealand
Argentina v Australia
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Key facilities
- 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
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Need to know
When: October 17 until November 10
Cost: Entry is free but some events require prior registration
Where: Various locations including National Theatre (Abu Dhabi), Abu Dhabi Cultural Center, Zayed University Promenade, Beach Rotana (Abu Dhabi), Vox Cinemas at Yas Mall, Sharjah Youth Center
What: The Korea Festival will feature art exhibitions, a B-boy dance show, a mini K-pop concert, traditional dance and music performances, food tastings, a beauty seminar, and more.
For more information: www.koreafestivaluae.com
Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
Read more from Aya Iskandarani
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The bio
His favourite book - 1984 by George Orwell
His favourite quote - 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance' by Derek Bok, Former President of Harvard
Favourite place to travel to - Peloponnese, Southern Greece
Favourite movie - The Last Emperor
Favourite personality from history - Alexander the Great
Role Model - My father, Yiannis Davos
TECH%20SPECS%3A%20APPLE%20WATCH%20SE%20(second%20generation)
%3Cp%3EDisplay%3A%2040mm%2C%20324%20x%20394%3B%2044mm%2C%20368%20x%20448%3B%20Retina%20LTPO%20OLED%2C%20up%20to%201000%20nits%3B%20Ion-X%20glass%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EProcessor%3A%20Apple%20S8%2C%20W3%20wireless%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ECapacity%3A%2032GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EMemory%3A%201GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPlatform%3A%20watchOS%209%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EHealth%20metrics%3A%202nd-gen%20heart%20rate%20sensor%2C%20workouts%2C%20fall%2Fcrash%20detection%3B%20emergency%20SOS%2C%20international%20emergency%20calling%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EConnectivity%3A%20GPS%2FGPS%20%2B%20cellular%3B%20Wi-Fi%2C%20LTE%2C%20Bluetooth%205.3%2C%20NFC%20(Apple%20Pay)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDurability%3A%20Water%20resistant%20up%20to%2050m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EBattery%3A%20269mAh%20Li-ion%2C%20up%20to%2018h%2C%20wireless%20charging%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ECards%3A%20eSIM%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EFinishes%3A%20Aluminium%3B%20midnight%2C%20silver%2C%20starlight%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIn%20the%20box%3A%20Watch%20SE%2C%20magnetic-to-USB-C%20charging%20cable%2C%20band%2Floop%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPrice%3A%20Starts%20at%20Dh999%20(40mm)%20%2F%201%2C119%20(44mm)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
CHELSEA SQUAD
Arrizabalaga, Bettinelli, Rudiger, Christensen, Silva, Chalobah, Sarr, Azpilicueta, James, Kenedy, Alonso, Jorginho, Kante, Kovacic, Saul, Barkley, Ziyech, Pulisic, Mount, Hudson-Odoi, Werner, Havertz, Lukaku.
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Real Sociedad v Leganes (midnight)
Saturday
Alaves v Real Valladolid (4pm)
Valencia v Granada (7pm)
Eibar v Real Madrid (9.30pm)
Barcelona v Celta Vigo (midnight)
Sunday
Real Mallorca v Villarreal (3pm)
Athletic Bilbao v Levante (5pm)
Atletico Madrid v Espanyol (7pm)
Getafe v Osasuna (9.30pm)
Real Betis v Sevilla (midnight)
The biog
Favourite food: Fish and seafood
Favourite hobby: Socialising with friends
Favourite quote: You only get out what you put in!
Favourite country to visit: Italy
Favourite film: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Family: We all have one!
Abu Dhabi race card
5pm Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
5.30pm Abu Dhabi Colts Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
6pm Abu Dhabi Championship Listed | Dh180,000 | 1,600m
6.30pm Maiden | Dh80,000 | 1,600m
7pm Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap | Dh80,000 | 1,400m
7.30pm Handicap (TB) |Dh100,000 | 2,400m