FIFA Warns of World Cup Ban if Euro Super League Proceeds
'Way back before the dawn of time -- somewhere in the 1980s -- a kajillionaire media mogul had a sinister plan.
It was one so dastardly, it'd consign the Ipswich Towns, Hannover 96s, St-Étiennes, Real Socieadads, and their ilk to a purgatory of local relevance only.
His goal was to remove Europe's mega-clubs from their national ladder systems to form a North American-style major league.
Instead, Silvio Berlusconi went on to a life of conservative politics and hosting wild parties laced with underaged girls.
His idea of a European super league, though, ultimately morphed into the UEFA- and FIFA-sanctioned Champions League, the most prestigious club competition in all the known universe.
Right about the same time the Champions League was born, England's First Division clubs thought this'd be a swell idea for them, as they dominated the TV ratings and had a budding presence in other global markets.
Thus, the Premiership came to be, with a bone tossed to the rest of the nation's clubs that promotion and relegation would still exist.
Suffice to say, it's become wildly successful, attracting fans on a massive scale and ultra-monied foreign owners wanting in on the action.
With those success stories, the notion of a pan-European super league has never really gone away.
Now, it appears momentum is building among the Continent's big clubs to finally make the move.
FIFA, for one, is taking this beyond seriously.
Why else would they be issuing drastic ultimatums about banning participating players from playing in the World Cup?
Their stance is ominous and, most likely, effective.
After all, FIFA wound up taking over the Champions League concept. Now that they're allegedly not as greedy as they used to be, it's possible that receiving a slice of a massive dosh pie wouldn't work this time.
There's another, more practical issue. More than just those clubs consider themselves to be big brands. In North American's major team sports, the smallest membership -- MLB -- has 30 teams and is looking to expand again.
Already, Arsenal's doing the math and noting the height of the hurdles, so they're now denying having any plans to join the proposed new venture.
Besides, if they remain in the Premiership, they'll be an even bigger fish in the pond.
Sentiment is on their side.
A European super league with no relegation for its 11 founding members would have no sporting integrity for a start, let alone the sheer greed and arrogance of the idea. That’s a private members’ club not a proper competition. No risk, no drama, no credibility. No thanks.
— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) November 3, 2018
Seems like the European Super League's planners might wanna do more planning.