Press Association

All English clubs now out of European Super League?

The European Super League as it was announced on Sunday is already a thing of the past. 

Founding members and Premier League clubs Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City, and Tottenham Hotspur have all begun the process to exit the controversial Super League that sparked outrage and fan protests. 

Reports surfaced earlier in the day that Chelsea were also out and that the league could soon be abandoned. 

The closed nature of the competition included no threat of relegation for founding teams and upset club football purists, some of whom launched in-person protests at stadium sites. Arsenal directly apologized for their involvement in the breakaway league that directly went against the competitive format of standard football pyramids. 

"It was never our intention to cause such distress, however when the invitation to join the Super League came, while knowing there were no guarantees, we did not want to be left behind to ensure we protected Arsenal and its future," the Arsenal board explained. "As a result of listening to you and the wider football community over recent days we are withdrawing from the proposed Super League. We made a mistake, and we apologise for it." 

The club added: "Our aim is always to make the right decisions for this great football club, to protect it for the future and to take us forward. We didn’t make the right decision here, which we fully accept.

"We have heard you."

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy said: "We regret the anxiety and upset caused by the ESL proposal. We felt it was important that our club participated in the development of a possible new structure that sought to better ensure financial fair play and financial sustainability whilst delivering significantly increased support for the wider football pyramid.

"We believe that we should never stand still and that the sport should constantly review competitions and governance to ensure the game we all love continues to evolve and excite fans around the world.

"We should like to thank all those supporters who presented their considered opinions." 

It's unclear if Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus will also all pull out of the ESL. Former player and insider Stan Collymore previously tweeted Barcelona and Atletico Madrid were done with the project that, by most accounts as of Tuesday night, was ultimately doomed from the start: 

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