European Super League is back on track after the positive news coming from the European Court of Justice (ECJ). ECJ has termed FIFA and UEFA’s decision to hold European Super League from happening as “unlawful”, and within hours the audience saw ESL releasing their format.
The league will commence from 2025 and seems like a direct competition to the prestigious UEFA Champions League.
Our proposed new men's ESL competition is a league structure based on a true pan-European pyramid: It will consist of 64 participating clubs in three tiers. Watch the video to learn more about the key elements. #BetterForFootball pic.twitter.com/yHfhVaPTFt
— A22 Sports (@A22Sports) December 21, 2023
The competition’s matches will happen mid-week, like UEFA Champions, Europa and Conference League, as the 64 teams participating in it will be divided into three categories. The first season will run from September 2025 till April 2026.
The most elite category will be ‘Star’ which will have 2 groups of 8 teams each. The second-tier category will be called ‘Gold’ which will have similar 2 groups of 8 teams each. The third tier is called ‘Blue’ which will have 4 groups of 8 teams each.
The competition’s matches will be held on home & away basis, with each team playing 14 matches (7 home & 7 away) before the best one’s qualify for the knockout stage.
The top 4 teams from each group of Star and Gold, as well as the top two teams from each group of Blue league will qualify for the knockout stage.
All three tiers have their own knockout stage; for example, a Blue team won’t play a Gold team in the same season.
The knockout stage, starting with the quarter-final, will be two-legged affairs. One leg at a football club’s home, while the second leg away.
The semi-final will be played in a similar home & away basis before a Final is contested on a ‘Neutral’ venue.
The league is based on promotion and relegation, as the bottom two teams of Star and Gold league will relegate to the lower tier, while the top-two teams from Star, Gold and Blue will promote to the next tier.
Every season the bottom 20 teams of the Blue League will be replaced by the best performing teams from the European domestic circuit. ESL’s motto of ‘Mobility’ is present in this system.
The top performing European clubs will play each other, while also having the pressure of getting relegated if they don’t perform well.
ESL has indicated ‘Sporting Merit’ in this league, along with openness for all. ESL brand themselves as someone who are open for all – open for all competition, players and fans.
