Spanish giants remain the only club still openly advocating for a Super League
Real Madrid have been urged to end their pursuit of a breakaway European Super League and return to the “football family”.
Nasser Al-Khelaifi, Paris Saint-Germain president and chairman of the European Football Clubs (EFC), told the Spanish giants there was no need for rival competitions when the Champions League remained “the best club competition”.
Madrid remain the only club still openly advocating for a Super League, years after the project’s controversial announcement and then almost immediate collapse in 2021.
Al-Khelaifi said: “We’re a family. We want everyone back, that’s true. Real Madrid too, we want everyone back.
“This is their family and their home, it’s everyone’s home. So we don’t need any other competition. Today we have the best club competition, and with even better formats.”
The original plan for a Super League included 12 of Europe’s biggest teams who were aiming to establish a closed league they could play in every season, without need for qualification.
The project was abandoned after serious backlash from the collective voice of fans, players and governments across Europe. Most of the founding clubs withdrew, leaving only Real Madrid and Barcelona.
However, Barcelona president Joan Laporta attended the annual assembly of the EFC in Rome this week. The EFC is a group of around 800 European clubs which helps to represent their common interests.
The club withdrew from it when the Super League was announced in 2021.
“Nasser, the president of the EFC, invited us,” said Laporta. “We graciously accepted. There’s a very good relationship.
“With FC Barcelona, we’re in favour of pacifying European football. We want an agreement and a return to Uefa.”
