Eight of the 12 sides involved in the catastrophic plans
have announced their withdrawal, with Arsenal, Atletico Madrid, Chelsea, Inter
Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur all
formally apologising to UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin for their
involvement.
"If some elect to go their own way, then they must live with the consequences of their choices.
— UEFA (@UEFA) April 20, 2021
"No doubt whatsoever of FIFA's disapproval of this. Full support to UEFA."
Read more as FIFA and the International Olympic Committee condemn 'Super League': 👇
Ceferin threatened significant punishments for all 12 sides
initially, and with four teams still clinging on for dear life, ESPN state that
the UEFA chief is looking to push forward with his disciplinary plans.
The idea of lifetime bans from UEFA competitions was floated
about in the early stages, but that is not actually an option. The maximum
punishment UEFA can hand out is two-year bans, so that's what they are pushing
for.
The eight sides who have withdrawn are also expected to face
punishments, but Ceferin has vowed to treat each club individually and has
praised the one-time rebels for apologising for their mistakes. Seven teams are
already believed to have agreed on punishments, with Inter expected to follow
suit soon.
"For me it's a clear difference between the English
clubs and the other six," he said. "They pulled out first; they
admitted they made a mistake.
"For me, there are three groups of this 12 -- the
English six, who went out first, then the other three [Atletico Madrid, Milan
and Inter] after them and then the ones who feel the Earth is flat and they
think the Super League still exists [Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus]. And
there is a big difference between those. But everyone will be held responsible.
In what way, we will see."
Ceferin is keen to charge the four remaining sideswith a
breach of Article 51 of the statutes, which states: "No combinations or
alliances between. clubs affiliated, directly or indirectly, to different UEFA
Member Associations may be formed without the permission of UEFA."
However, those four teams believe such bans are impossible.
Firstly, AC Milan, Barcelona, Juventus and Real are arguing that their plan to
form the Super League was simply asking UEFA for 'permission and recognition',
rather than officially breaking away from the organisation.
🤩 Who are you backing to lift the 🏆 in Istanbul? 🇹🇷#UCL
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) May 5, 2021
There's also a Madrid court injunction - which ruled that
UEFA could not discipline teams for their desire to form the Super League - to
deal with. Sources close to the situation believe that UEFA could not simply
punish the four teams without facing an enormous legal battle which would make
it incredibly difficult.
Ceferin does not want things to get that far and simply
wants at least one of the four remaining sides to withdraw. It's understood
that the Super League will officially collapse once and for all if nine of the
12 teams pull out, so the hope is that an agreement can be reached away from
the court room.
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