For many people in the football world, the three most dangerous words in the English language are now: ‘European Super League’. On Sunday 18 April, 12 of the most famous clubs in England, Italy, and Spain announced that they would be breaking away from the existing structures that govern European football to form their own league backed by the giant Wall Street investment bank, JP Morgan Chase.
The creation of this European Super League (ESL), where some of the world’s wealthiest and biggest clubs will exclusively compete against each other in a closed and tightly controlled format, was a shock to many – including some of the sport’s senior officials. But given the relentless and thorough commercialisation of the beautiful game in recent years, it was also grimly predictable.
From ever-rising ticket prices and leveraged buyouts to the scheduling of games at odd times to fit TV schedules, football – and European football in particular – is increasingly being oriented towards profit over all other considerations.
