European Super League overshadows Man City-Arsenal Premiership match

As Arsenal and Manchester City prepare to face one another on Wednesday night in the English Premiership, Al Arabiya English columnist Omar Al-Ubaydli asks whether the two clubs will be competing in the European Super League next season.

In an op-ed published by Die Welt and other media outlets last week, A22 Sports Management CEO Bernd Reichart claimed that professional football is under threat and explained why a super league would benefit European football.

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A22 is a company formed to sponsor and assist in creating the European Super League. In its advisory capacity, it focuses on the overall structure, operating and financial aspects of the potential new competition.

Reichart indicated in his op-ed that huge imbalances have emerged across the continent, and football clubs with European traditions can no longer compete. Billions of dollars in debt have been accumulated, exacerbated by little spending controls.

A year ago, several clubs, including Arsenal, apologized to their fan bases for holding secret talks about creating a super league.

The concept of a closed-shop league with no relegation possible has been shelved, with Reichart suggesting that a European football league should be an open, multi-divisional competition with 60 to 80 teams. He added that this should allow for a sustainable distribution of revenues and, crucially, no permanent member clubs.

In his column today, Al-Ubaydli argues that at its heart, the controversy over a European Super League is caused by irreconcilable differences regarding how to grow the game of football.

“On the one hand, clubs like Real Madrid and Juventus think that they earn an insufficient share of the existing revenues,” writes al-Ubaydli, adding that on the other hand, the rest of the football system thinks that acquiescing to demands would lead to a significant contraction in total football revenues.

Although Reichart put forward the claim that clubs are often unable to publicly speak up against a system where the threat of sanctions is used to stifle opposition, Al-Ubaydli indicated that, in principle, individual European governments possess the political power necessary to restore order. However, the clubs can play them off against one another.

“Therefore, the only way for the European governments to respond effectively to the cabal of elite clubs is for them to fashion their own reactive cabal,” Al-Ubadli wrote.

For Reichart, developing a pan-European competition will build on the aspiration to create the most exciting sporting event in the world.

“This can only be achieved with competitions that enable the world’s best players to compete throughout the entire season with exciting matches from beginning to end,” he explained.

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