Twelve clubs have agreed to enter a new European Super League, including Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, and Tottenham Hotspur (ESL).
The Premier League clubs will join AC Milan, Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus, and Real Madrid in a historic leap for European football.
The founding clubs decided to create a “modern midweek rivalry,” with teams continuing to “compete in their respective national leagues,” according to the ESL.
It says the first season “is planned to begin as soon as possible” and that “an additional three clubs are expected to join” the breakaway.
According to the ESL, a women’s competition will begin as soon as the men’s tournament concludes.
As news of the plan to create a European Super League broke on Sunday, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Uefa, and the Premier League all condemned it.
Fifa, the world governing body, has explicitly stated that such a tournament would not be recognized, and that any participants participating in it would be refused the opportunity to compete in a World Cup.
Uefa, Europe’s governing body, issued a new notice on Sunday, stating that players involved would be barred from competing in all other domestic, European, or international tournaments, as well as from representing their national teams.
Fifa expressed its “disapproval” of the proposed Super League after it was announced, and urged “all parties involved in heated debates to participate in calm, positive, and balanced dialogue for the good of the game.”
“Going forward, the founding clubs look forward to having talks with Uefa and Fifa to work together to achieve the best results for the new season,” the ESL said in a statement.
Uefa, the Football Association of England, the Premier League, the Spanish Football Federation, La Liga, and the Italian Football Federation, as well as Serie A, issued a joint statement that they would “remain united” in their efforts to avoid the breakaway.
