Exclusive: Proposed European Premier League could be illegal under EU law, says leading sports lawyer

The proposed new European Premier League could be illegal under EU law, leading experts on European sports law have said.

“The moves afoot in Europe mean that the idea of closed leagues could itself be regarded as anti-competitive behaviour,” said Darren Bailey, a lawyer and consultant to Charles Russell Speechlys’ sports group who was formerly the Football Association’s director of football governance and regulation.

The proposed new European Premier League, which is being led by Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez, would reportedly be a closed league, without the usual system of promotion or relegation. As such it could be barred by European Union competition law.

“In principle, yes - any closed shop for elite clubs is very likely to contravene the terms of EU competition law,” said Dr Katarina Pijetlovic, a reader in sports law from Manchester Metropolitan University. “Some promotion and relegation system would have to be in place, as well as solidarity payments and submitting to regulatory competence of Uefa and Fifa.”

Pijetlovic said that even decisions made by the Europan Club Association may not be immune to a legal challenge, because the structure of its executive board is dominated by elite clubs. “There is a good chance that elite clubs might constitute either a collectively dominant group of undertakings or a powerful cartel and their blackmailing strategy in itself might contravene competition law."

Any possible closed pan-European football league has been compared to basketball’s EuroLeague. This features 18 sides, with 11 having long-term licenses, guaranteeing their spots in perpetuity. The Union of European Leagues of Basketball (ULEB), the association of the 11 major basketball leagues in Europe, recently filed a complaint to the European Commission against the EuroLeague organisers. ULEB argues that the removal of spots for national league winners in the EuroLeague and the way media rights distribution favours the 11 clubs with franchises amounts to “anti-competitive behaviour” and the teams are acting as a cartel.

If the outcome of the case sides with ULEB, it could set a precedent that effectively means that any European Premier League could be stopped from getting off the ground.

“It has the potential to set a precedent whereby established leagues can take a competition law complaint against a breakaway,” Bailey said.

“It is somewhat unusual to have leagues taking legal action as a result of some of the restrictions on clubs being able to get into a European league. I think what we might be seeing is a reinforcement of the principles of the European sporting model, potentially come through complaints that are already in train through the European Commission. One of the key principles is promotion and relegation. This may impact on any closed-league structure being permitted in football.

“The EuroLeague granted long-term licences to each of the 11 shareholder clubs and so limited access to the league. I think you could start to see the potential resonance of the case.”

In 2018, Uefa and the EU signed a new Memorandum of Understanding. The agreement stated that the Council of Europe and Uefa recognise that the European sports model “is based on sporting and financial solidarity mechanisms” citing “open competitions with a balance between clubs and national teams” and explicitly mentioning “the principle of promotion and relegation”.

Former Netherlands football legend Ruud Gullit added his voice to opposition to the proposed European Premier League. “A Super League would damage the beautiful game of football which we know and love in an irreversible way,” Gullit wrote on Twitter. “It’s not right, it’s harmful and driven by wrong intentions.” Gullit added: “This proposed league will kill clubs that deserve support.”

Luis Figo, the former Ballon D’Or winner, also expressed his unhappiness.

“What I read about this Super League idea will destroy football as we know it,” he wrote. “It’s all about greed and keeping the game for a few elite clubs, while killing the other clubs and leagues that fans love.”