European Super League: Aston Villa, Wolves and Newcastle United primed for place in new-look set-up

Aston Villa, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Newcastle United and clubs of similar stature could receive invites to sign up for the new-look European Super League. Fresh proposals have been released this morning (February 9) for an entirely different plot to the one that failed in 2021, with 60-80 teams competing against clubs across Europe.

The original idea of two years ago was to take the ‘big six’ sides in the Premier League and form a division with clubs of alike reputations across Europe, including Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain. Fans in England were disgusted at the thought of their team being forced out of the Premier League to compete, though, leading to plenty of protests.

Understandably, supporters did not like the idea of teams getting a place in the league based on club size and reputation alone, so the new proposal is in a very different form. The competition would ditch the original idea of having permanent members, instead receiving sides based on sporting performance, says A22 chief executive Bernd Reichart.

“The foundations of European football are in danger of collapsing,” Reichart told German newspaper Die Welt. “It’s time for a change. It is the clubs that bear the entrepreneurial risk in football. But when important decisions are at stake, they are too often forced to sit idly by on the sidelines as the sporting and financial foundations crumble around them,” Reichart said.

A22, a company formed to assist with the production of the Super League, has consulted dozens of clubs across Europe since last Autumn, developing new principles for a new-look division. “Our dialogue was open, honest, constructive and resulted in clear ideas about what changes are needed and how they could be implemented,” Reichart continued. “There is a lot to do and we will continue our dialogue.”

If the ESL were to go ahead based on the current plans, it would contain between 60 and 80 teams in a multi-league format, with a guarantee of at least 14 matches per club per season. Those involved would not have to give up their spots in their domestic competitions, with the ESL acting as a fresh way for sides to experience European football.

It is unclear exactly how teams in the Premier League would qualify, but one would assume it would be in the same way that exists for the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League. With that in mind, as long as Villa, Wolves, Newcastle, or similar teams finish high enough up in the league standings and/or win a cup competition, they would almost certainly have a way of getting involved.