Governing Bodies
Barca, Madrid and Juventus get legal backing to continue with Super League
Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus said on Friday (July 30) they will continue with plans for a European Super League after a court ruled that governing body Uefa terminate disciplinary proceedings against founding members of the breakaway project.
The three clubs released a joint statement welcoming a Madrid court’s decision on Friday asking Uefa to revoke action against them for planning the creation of the Super League.
Juventus, Barcelona and Real Madrid are the last ones standing of the 12 clubs that signed up to the breakaway project in April, only for it to unravel when six Premier League clubs plus Inter Milan, AC Milan and Atletico Madrid withdrew.
The 17th Mercantile Court of Madrid ordered that all financial and sporting penalties against the founding members of the Super League were dropped, including the potential €100 million (S$160 million) non-compliance penalty for the nine clubs who backed out of the project should they rejoin it, as they agreed with Uefa.
“The Court backs the request made by the promoters of the European Super League, dismisses Uefa’s appeal, and confirms its warning to Uefa that failure to comply with its ruling shall result in fines and potential criminal liability,” the clubs said.
“The case will be assessed by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, which shall review Uefa’s monopolistic position over European football… We are pleased that going forward we will no longer be subject to ongoing Uefa threats.
“Our aim is to keep developing the Super League project in a constructive and cooperative manner… We remain confident in the success of a project that will be always compliant with European Union laws.”
Uefa declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.
The Court also ordered that Uefa requests that the Premier League and Italian Football Federation cancel all measures taken against the clubs from their leagues.
This includes the £22 million(S$40 million) “good-will payment” and threat of a future 30-point deduction to the Premier League’s “Big Six”, issued on June 9.
The Italian FA had said they would ban Italian sides who participate in any future Super League from competing in the country’s top division, Serie A.
The judgment also said the Premier League and Italian FA must abstain from putting in place any measures that might, directly or indirectly, hinder the founding of a European Super League.
Unlike in the Champions League, where teams have to qualify through the domestic league, the founding Super League teams guaranteed themselves a place in the new competition every year.
The Super League argued it would boost revenue for top clubs and allow them to distribute more money to the rest of the game.
However, the sport’s governing bodies, other teams and fan organisations countered that it would increase the power and wealth of the elite clubs and the partially-closed structure of the league went against European football’s long-standing model.
Seeking to dissuade future breakaways, Uefa had sought to impose stiff penalties on the rebel clubs but suspended disciplinary proceedings in June.
Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus have continued to defend the Super League plan, releasing joint statements in May complaining of unacceptable third-party pressures and threats to abandon the project.
Despite their involvement in the proposed European Super League, the three clubs have been admitted to the 2021-22 Champions League.
-Reuters
Governing Bodies
Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council
Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.
The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.
Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.
He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.
An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.
He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.
“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”
Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.
“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.
He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.
“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.
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A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.
Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.
He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.
The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.
He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.
Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.
While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.
-Reuters
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The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has denied reports of an outstanding debt to former captain Christian Chukwu and has challenged anyone with verifiable documents to prove otherwise.
Chukwu, a former national team captain and chief coach, died last Saturday.
The Nigeria Football Federation decried statements in a section of social media that the football-ruling body was indebted to the deceased.
Reacting to one statement on social media that claimed NFF owed the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations-winning team captain the sum of $128,000, NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said: “There is no record in the NFF of any outstanding indebtedness to ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu.
“During the first term of the Board headed by Amaju Pinnick, a committee was set up to diligently peruse the papers of coaches who were being owed, even from previous NFF administrations.
“That committee was given the clear mandate to verify all debts and ensure that the coaches being owed were paid immediately. I am aware that the ‘Chairman’ was in the employ of the NFF between 2002 and 2005, before he was relieved of the post following the 1-1 draw with Angola in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Kano in August 2005. There is certainly no record of indebtedness to him in the NFF.”
Sanusi challenged anyone with genuine and verifiable documents of NFF indebtedness to any coach, who has worked with any of the National Teams over the past two decades, to come forward and tender those documents.
“As a credible organization that is very much alive to its responsibilities, if we are confronted with any genuine document of indebtedness to any coach, we will offset the debt immediately.”
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