Governing Bodies
Uefa ends legal battle against Juventus, Barcelona and Real Madrid over Super League
Uefa on Sunday (Sept 27) nullified disciplinary action against breakaway European Super League (ESL) clubs Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus after a Madrid court ruled that European football’s governing body should not sanction the rebel clubs.
Uefa had opened a probe against the three clubs but in June it suspended proceedings after being notified by Swiss authorities of a court order from the commercial court in Madrid obtained by the legal entity European Super League Company SL.
The latest step from Uefa was to declare that the proceedings were nullified.
“Following the stay of proceedings against FC Barcelona, Juventus FC and Real Madrid CF, in the matter related to a potential violation of Uefa’s legal framework in connection with the so called ‘Super League’, the Uefa Appeals Body has declared today the proceedings null and void, as if the proceedings had never been opened,” Uefa’s appeals body said in a statement.
Juventus, Barcelona and Real are the last of the 12 clubs who signed up to the ESL in April not to have distanced themselves from the breakaway project which unravelled when all six English clubs plus Inter Milan, AC Milan and Atletico Madrid withdrew.
Proceedings have continued in a Madrid court to stop Uefa from punishing the clubs who tried to break away from the established European football structures, including Uefa’s Champions League.
In July, the 17th Mercantile Court of Madrid ordered that all financial and sporting penalties against the founding members of the ESL should be dropped, including monies due to be paid to Uefa by the nine other clubs, which include six Premier League teams, who had initially been part of the project.
Uefa said that it “remains confident in and will continue to defend its position in all the relevant jurisdictions”.
“Uefa notes that the declaration made by the Uefa Appeals Body follows the formal notification made to Uefa of a court order granting Uefa a few days to clarify its compliance with decisions of the Madrid Commercial Court No. 17,” the organisation said in a statement.
In May, the nine rebel clubs who had pulled out of the breakaway, including Manchester United and Liverpool, agreed to pay a combined 22 million pounds (S$40.82 million) to Uefa as a “gesture of goodwill”.
However on Monday, Uefa said that “in view of the pending Court proceedings in Madrid, and to avoid any unnecessary complication… Uefa will not request payment of any of the amounts offered”.
The plans, announced in April, for the 12 clubs to create the ESL collapsed after just two days as eight of the 12 founding members from England, Italy and Spain abandoned the breakaway project under huge pressure from fans, politicians and soccer officials.
The ESL argued it would increase revenue for the top soccer clubs in Europe and allow them to distribute more money to the rest of the game.
However, the sport’s governing bodies, other teams and fan organisations said the league would only boost the power and wealth of elite clubs, and that the partially closed structure went against European football’s long-standing model.
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has continued to say the plan remains a viable way forward for Europe’s top clubs and on Monday Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli wrote to the club’s shareholders and explained his club’s backing for the plans.
“This is a new meritocratic paradigm and a return to the fundamentals of cost control and transparency,” Agnelli wrote in the letter.
“It is a new paradigm which football can no longer afford to overlook, and on whose basis political dialogue must resume,” he added.
-Reuters
World football governing body, FIFA, today clocks its 122nd anniversary, celebrating more than a century of overseeing and expanding the global game.
Founded on May 21, 1904, in Paris, France, FIFA began with just seven member associations — France, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
From that modest beginning, the organisation has grown into the most influential sports governing body in the world, with 211 member associations spread across all continents.
Over the decades, FIFA has transformed football into a truly global phenomenon through competitions such as the FIFA World Cup, Women’s World Cup, Club World Cup, youth tournaments, and developmental programmes aimed at growing the game worldwide.
The organisation has also witnessed remarkable milestones, including the expansion of the men’s World Cup from 13 teams in 1930 to 48 teams beginning from the 2026 edition to be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
FIFA’s journey has equally reflected football’s growing influence beyond sport, with the game becoming a major tool for diplomacy, social inclusion, youth empowerment, and economic development across the world.
As FIFA celebrates 122 years of existence, attention is now focused on the future of the game, technological innovations, expanded competitions, women’s football growth, and the continued globalisation of football.
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UEFA has issued a lifetime ban to Petr Vlachovsky, a Czech women’s soccer coach who secretly filmed his players, the governing body announced on Tuesday.
Czech media reported that the coach was convicted in May 2025 and initially received a suspended one-year prison sentence and a five-year domestic coaching ban for filming FC Slovacko’s players in changing rooms, the youngest of whom was 17.
In a statement, UEFA’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) said it had decided to ban Vlachovsky “from exercising any football-related activity for life” following the appointment of an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector to investigate allegations of potential misconduct.
“The CEDB further decided to request FIFA to extend the abovementioned ban on a worldwide level and to order the Football Association of the Czech Republic to revoke Mr Petr Vlachovsky’s coaching licence,” the statement added.
FC Slovacko did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Football players’ union FIFPRO welcomed the ban as well as UEFA’s request for world soccer governing body FIFA to impose an international ban on Vlachovsky.
“This outcome sends a strong and necessary message that abusive and inappropriate behaviour has no place in football and that safeguarding the well-being of players must remain a priority at every level of the game,” FIFPRO added in a statement.
Vlachovsky had also previously served as coach of the Czech women’s Under-19s team.
RELATED STORY: https://sportsvillagesquare.com/2026/04/08/outrage-as-male-coach-who-secretly-filmed-women-players-still-free-to-work-in-football/
-Reuters
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Southampton have been kicked out of the Championship playoff final after being found guilty of spying on semi-final opponents Middlesbrough, the English Football League said on Tuesday.
Middlesbrough, who lost 2-1 to Southampton on aggregate in the semi, have been reinstated and will face Hull City on Saturday in what is dubbed the world’s richest soccer match.
Promotion to the Premier League, even with an immediate relegation, is estimated to be worth in the region of 200 million pounds ($268.10 million) over three seasons.
Southampton, who admitted the charges, were also found guilty of filming training sessions involving Oxford United in December and Ipswich Town in April during the regular season.
They have also been deducted four points from the start of next season in England’s second tier.
“An Independent Disciplinary Commission has today expelled Southampton from the Championship play-offs after the club admitted multiple breaches of EFL regulations related to the unauthorised filming of other clubs’ training,” the EFL said.
“Southampton admitted breaches of Regulations requiring Clubs to act with the utmost good faith and prohibiting the observation of another Club’s training session within 72 hours of a scheduled match.
“The effect of today’s order is that Middlesbrough are reinstated into the 2026 play-offs and will proceed to the play-off final against Hull City. The final remains scheduled for Saturday 23 May, with the kick-off time to be confirmed.”
The EFL confirmed that Southampton could appeal against the decision and that “parties are working to try and resolve any appeal on Wednesday 20 May.
“Subject to the outcome, it could result in a further change to Saturday’s fixture,” the statement said.
‘BORO CALLED FOR SOUTHAMPTON EXPULSION
Middlesbrough had called for Southampton’s expulsion after having a training session at their Rockliffe Park site filmed 48 hours ahead of the first leg of their playoff semi-final with Southampton which ended 0-0.
The north-east club said they welcomed the decision.
“We believe this sends out a clear message for the future of our game regarding sporting integrity and conduct,” the north Middlesbrough said in a statement.
“As a club, we are now focused on our game against Hull City at Wembley on Saturday.”
Southampton were relegated from the Premier League last season and were struggling in the early part of this campaign until a storming finish in which they went unbeaten in 19 league games to finish fourth and enter the playoffs.
The south-coast club are the first to fall foul of the Football League’s regulation 127 — brought in after Leeds United were found guilty of spying on Derby County seven years ago, an offence for which they were fined 200,000 pounds.
-Reuters
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