From the point of view of association president Gianni Infantino, the ruling of the European Court of Justice on the Super League has no far-reaching consequences for the world football association FIFA.
“With the greatest respect to the European Court of Justice, today’s ruling doesn’t actually change anything. Historically, we organize the best competitions in the world and that will continue to be the case in the future,” Infantino said in a statement.
The ECJ had ruled that FIFA and the European umbrella organization UEFA may not generally make other competitions dependent on their approval and may not prohibit clubs and players from taking part. The dispute was about plans by some top clubs for a European Super League. The judges also explained that the ruling does not necessarily mean that the Super League has to be approved.
“We will continue to host the most spectacular, competitive and meaningful tournaments in the world and use our revenues to promote football in all parts of the world through solidarity programs that ensure that the less privileged benefit from these top competitions,” emphasized Infantino. As always, FIFA will do this in close collaboration with its member associations, confederations and all stakeholders for the exclusive benefit of football.
Faeser praises the attitude of the German clubs
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) warned in the newspapers of the “Funke Mediengruppe” to deal with the verdict responsibly and called further commercialization of football the wrong approach.
“Anyone who doesn’t recognize this will lose the fans whose passion football thrives on. I’m happy when German clubs say clearly that they wouldn’t take part in a Super League,” said Faeser. “If you love football, you don’t want a Super League.”