European Super League Gets a Red Card: 12 Breakaway Clubs

Abstract

On April 18, 2021, 12 of Europe’s elite men’s professional football (soccer) clubs announced they were creating a stand-alone midweek European Super League (ESL). The league would be separate and independent from existing governance bodies controlling the sport worldwide. In addition, the league would exist in a closed competition format where only member clubs played against each other. A total departure from the traditional open competition format of relegation and promotion. However, the ESL clubs also proposed to continue playing in their current national weekend leagues. During the next 72 hr an extraordinary drama played out. Enraged fans, players, and football governance officials were unrelenting in their efforts to kill the ESL. This case examines the contextual background, precipitating factors, and intense counter forces that quickly led to ESL’s demise. The case raises five questions: Were there valid reasons for the clubs to seek a new business model? Were elements in the strategic planning process missing in the decision to launch ESL? Were club owners justified in breaking away to form the ESL? Was the decision to create ESL unethical? and What actions can the clubs take to repair relationships with stakeholders?