MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th April, 2021) LaLiga, Spain's national top club tournament, criticized on Monday the creation of the European Super League, naming it a "breakaway" competition.
At Monday midnight, 12 European football clubs, including English Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester City, Liverpool, Spanish Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico, Italian Inter, Milan and Juventus, officially announced the establishment of the Super League, a new European club football tournament.
The competition includes 20 teams - 15 clubs-founders and other five teams qualified for the tournament every year in accordance with their achievements in the prior season. According to the official statement, the Super League will help clubs to overcome the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, as it showed the importance of "a strategic vision and a sustainable commercial approach" to maintain the European football system.
"LaLiga strongly condemns the recently published proposal for a breakaway, elitist European competition that attacks the principles of open competition and sporting merit which are at the heart of the domestic and European football pyramid. Today football fans across Europe can dream that their club, no matter the size, may excel, climb to the top and compete at the pinnacle of European football. LaLiga defends this European tradition of football for all. The concept proposed by 12 European clubs destroys that dream, shutting the door to the top of European football, allowing in just an elite few," the statement said.
The Spanish top league also said that the Super League is "nothing more than a selfish, egoistical proposal designed further enrich the already super rich," mentioning that this will undermine football's appeal and negatively influence "the entire footballing ecosystem."
Meanwhile, Spanish sports Minister Jose Manuel Rodriguez Uribes said that he would first discuss the initiative with its authors, as well as with UEFA, and then take his stance on the matter. The official added that all changes should be implemented while paying respect to athletic values and should not undermine the existing Spanish leagues or the national team.
On Sunday, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) together with the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) and England's Football Association made a joint statement, condemning the foundation of the Super League. France's Professional Football League, the German Football Association (DFB) and the German Football League (DFL) joined them.
