Super League: 12 big clubs announce the creation of a "new mid-week competition"

"12 of Europe's leading football clubs have today come together to announce they have agreed to establish a new mid-week competition, the Super League, governed by its Founding Clubs," announced these 12 clubs on 18/04/2021.

• Among these 12 clubs, 6 are English: Arsenal FC, Chelsea FC, Liverpool FC, Manchester City FC, Manchester United FC, and Tottenham Hotspur FC.
• 3 are Spanish: Club Atlético de Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Real Madrid CF.
• 3 are Italian: AC Milan, FC Inter Milan, and Juventus FC.

"It is anticipated that a further three clubs will join ahead of the inaugural season, which is intended to commence as soon as practicable," said the 12 founding clubs. To these 15 clubs, would be added each year "a qualifying mechanism for a further five teams to qualify annually based on achievements in the prior season".

The competition format provides for "two groups of ten, playing home and away fixtures, with the top three in each group automatically qualifying for the quarter finals. Teams finishing fourth and fifth will then compete in a two-legged play-off for the remaining…