Super League rebranded as Unify League with revised 96-team format

The promoters of the controversial Super League have unveiled revised plans for a new competition, now rebranded as the "Unify League," and are seeking official recognition from FIFA and Uefa.

A22 Sports Management, the group behind the project, announced the proposal on 18 december, citing a ruling from the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in support of its case.

The new proposal outlines a 96-team tournament split into four leagues, with matches taking place from September to April.

A knockout phase, starting with the quarter-finals, would then determine the overall winners. Participation would be merit-based, with qualification determined by annual domestic performances.

In their statement, A22 argued that the ECJ ruling last year establishes that competitions with meritocratic qualification systems, aligned with existing match calendars, can operate legally.

They also revealed plans to broadcast matches live and free of charge through a dedicated streaming platform.

A22 CEO Bernd Reichart explained the motivations behind the revamped proposal: "Our extensive engagement with key stakeholders revealed a number of pressing challenges facing the sport, including rising subscription costs for fans, an overloaded player calendar, insufficient investment in women's football, and dissatisfaction with the current European competition formats and governance. Our proposal is designed to directly address these challenges."

The backlash and the ECJ ruling

European football was rocked in april 2021 when 12 of the continent's biggest clubs announced their participation in the original Super League.

The move sparked widespread anger among fans and a stern response from Uefa, which threatened to ban involved clubs and players from competitions like the Champions League and World Cup.

Within 48 hours, nine of the 12 clubs — including all six Premier League sides — withdrew from the project, leading to its collapse.

However, Real Madrid and Barcelona have remained staunch advocates for the breakaway competition.

The ECJ later ruled in december 2023 that Uefa had breached EU law by abusing its "dominant position" to block rival competitions, giving fresh momentum to A22's ambitions. A subsequent ruling from a Spanish court in may 2024 criticised FIFA and Uefa for "preventing free competition" but did not explicitly endorse the Super League concept.

Uefa's stance

Uefa, however, has remained firm in its opposition. Following the ECJ judgment, European football's governing body insisted that the ruling did not authorise third parties to launch competitions without approval.

Uefa also stated it had since updated its rules to comply with EU law.

Despite Uefa's objections, the latest proposal from A22 marks a clear attempt to revive the concept of a pan-European competition outside Uefa's structure, albeit with significant changes to address previous criticisms.

Whether FIFA or Uefa will engage with the plan, or if it will meet another wave of resistance, remains to be seen.