European Super League plan is pulled apart by fans on social media…with some dismissing claims it will be ‘based on sporting merit’, while others MOCK the ‘creative’ divisional name choices
- The new proposed format for the breakaway league was unveiled on Thursday
- Several top clubs across Europe have condemned the new Super League plans
- Liverpool will regret not putting Arsenal away at home after failing to beat Man United Listen to It's All Kicking Off
Fans have wasted no time in picking apart the new plan for the European Super League, following Thursday's court ruling that paved the way for its return.
The new format – which was unveiled by A22 CEO Bernd Reichart – will feature both a men's and a women's competition, with 64 teams competing in the men's and 32 women's competitions.
In terms of the men's competition, the 64 clubs will be split into three separate competitions – Star, Gold and Blue – with the Star competition being the strongest and Blue the weakest.
Each team is guaranteed 14 matches, with everyone playing their group stage opponents on weekday dates between September and April.
The top four clubs from both groups in the gold and star competitions and the top two teams in the four blue groups will then take part in the knockout stages of their respective competitions in the spring.
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez (left) and Barcelona president Joan Laporta (right) have continued to push for its creation despite the various legal challenges they faced
The new plan for the European Super League has been unveiled (photo CEO Bernd Reichart)
Some fans did not hold back in their criticism of the new plan for the European Super League
Fans took to social media to express numerous issues with the plan, from the league's similarity to the current system to the uninspired choice of names for the league.
'This would obviously be much better than the original idea, but it is still just a way for the big clubs to consolidate their place at the top.' One user wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
'The domestic league performance of the top-tier teams would be completely irrelevant as long as they perform in the ESL.'
Another wrote: 'No permanent members' but all of us big teams are automatically put into the star league and get billions split between just us!!!! Slide it.”
The star and gold leagues will have 16 teams divided into two groups of eight, but the blue league will have 32 clubs divided into four groups of eight.
Sports consultancy A22, which is leading the plan, emphasized that it is 'based on sporting merits without permanent members'.
As a result, there is promotion and relegation, with the bottom team in both groups of the Star League being relegated and replaced by the two finalists in the Gold League.
This includes the blue league finalists, who will replace the teams that finish at the bottom of each gold group.
There were objections to most aspects of the plan, even to the names of the respective divisions
There is an even greater turnover from the blue league, with twenty clubs leaving the league each season and being replaced by twenty others based on their domestic performance.
In response, another fan wrote on social media: 'Not sure how that's different from today, more teams being in the top 2 groups as such? But run by clubs instead of UEFA?'
“Based on sporting merit, but domestic performance only gets you to the third division,” said another. While one fan mocked the names given to the different divisions, writing: 'Star, Gold and Blue leagues. How creative!'