Top clubs in talks to join new FIFA ‘European Premier League’

Manchester United and Liverpool are among the teams involved in the FIFA-backed league. 

A European Super League might finally be happening.

According to Sky Sports, some of Europe’s biggest clubs are in negotiations to join a FIFA-backed tournament that could start as early as 2022. In this competition, 18 clubs from Germany, France, England, Spain, and Italy would play home and away matches throughout the regular season, and the top-seeded clubs would battle in knockout rounds at the end of the year.

More than a dozen clubs are already said to be in negotiations, including Manchester United and Liverpool. Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham, and Chelsea are also candidates to join, although sources say the competition would likely only feature five English clubs. It does not appear that any clubs have signed legally-binding terms.

The tournament is backed by J.P. Morgan, who are said to be offering $6 billion dollars in funding. Signing onto the league could bring in hundreds of millions of dollars for clubs.

What problems could the tournament run into?

Supposedly, an official announcement of the tournament could be coming soon. But even with the public interest and big-money backers, the tournament could still encounter problems.

The biggest potential problem is that the tournament is FIFA’s idea, not UEFA’s, and some sources are suggesting that UEFA does not support the idea. If UEFA supported the idea, this tournament could be seen as the next evolution of the Champions League. But if UEFA is against the tournament, then FIFA would be undermining a regional federation and UEFA could bring legal challenges.

There could be a formal announcement of the new tournament as soon as the end of the month.