FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks on stage during the FIFA Football Summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, December 21, 2023. /CFP
Football bodies UEFA and FIFA contravened European Union (EU) law when they prevented the formation of the breakaway European Super League (ESL), the European Court of Justice said on Thursday.
The EU's top court ruled that global football governing body FIFA and its European equivalent UEFA abused their dominant position by forbidding clubs outright to compete in the ESL, but added that the competition may still not be approved.
Sports development company A22, formed to assist in the creation of the ESL, had claimed UEFA and FIFA held a monopoly position, which was in breach of the EU's Competition and Free Movement Law.
A woman reads a banner issued by the Leeds United Football Club criticizing the English Football Association and the English teams involved in the European Super League ahead of a Premier League match in Leeds, England, April 25, 2021. /CFP
"We have won the right to compete. The UEFA monopoly is over. Football is free," said A22 CEO Bernd Reichart.
"Clubs are now free from the threat of sanction and free to determine their own futures," Reichart added in a statement.
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