New European Super League proposals are more mutton dressed as lamb by three musketeers

The European Super League is back on the agenda, but while these plans remain led by Real Madrid and Juventus this won’t fix financial inequality.

The biggest irony of all is that at the absolute heart of their argument they’ve got a point. In financial terms, the Premier League has raced away from other European leagues in recent years, and that could do with a considerable degree of realignment. But just as was the case almost two years ago, it doesn’t feel as though many people are going to be convinced, and certainly not in England, where the likelihood of clubs even being able to join is already extremely low.

The European Super League is back on the agenda after those who made the fundamentally flawed proposals in 2021 returned with a second set which will definitely turn hearts and minds back in their direction. The difference in presentation this time around is like chalk and cheese. In 2021, the announcement of the first set was treated rather like a military coup. You could quite imagine the presidents of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus sat behind a desk in service attire, looking mildly uncomfortable at claiming the death of the old guard and a bright new future for everybody.

But this time, things have been different. Stylistically, rather than Pinochet chic they’ve gone for the aesthetic of Steve Buscemi with a skateboard slung over his shoulder. ‘Greetings fellow kids, this time we’re being collaborative‘. They’ve got a manifesto. They talk about fan engagement. They even might involve the women this time. If the actual motives behind it all weren’t so blatantly transparent, you could find yourself starting to get talked into believing it was a good idea.

So let’s be absolutely clear about this. The rationale for the European Super League remains exactly as it was in April 2021. Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus have seen the balance of power within European club football slip away from them and they want it back. They consider the natural order of things to be them at the absolute top table, sharing the best players and silverware between them.

We know this to be the case because this is exactly the form of European club football they agitated for in the first place. The very formation of the Champions League in 1992 came about because of belly-aching about not receiving enough money from UEFA and a vague threat to form, you guessed it, a European Super League. While they were the biggest beneficiaries…