European Super League: SPFL chief Neil Doncaster lends Scottish football's backing to UEFA opposition against "a clear and present danger"

Neil Doncaster, the CEO of the Scottish Premier League (Photo by Tom Shaw/Getty Images)

Clubs, including Manchester United, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Juventus have proposed a new competition – provoking ire across the continent and fierce opposition fro European football’s governing body.

UEFA president Aleksandr Ceferin has threatened players involved in the new competition risk their participation in UEFA competitions – and internationals – among the rising swell of opposition to the plans.

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Now Scotland’s domestic league has echoed the opposition with SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster criticising the plans as “a cynical and very worrying attempt to thwart the core principle of sporting merit”.

Mr Doncaster, who is also a member of UEFA’s sporting ethics and disciplinary board, said: “The SPFL stands alongside UEFA, the European Leagues, the English Premier League and the overwhelming majority of the game’s stakeholders in vehemently opposing the proposed European Super League.

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“These proposals, or any like them, would have an enormously damaging impact on the very fabric of our sport at all levels. It is no surprise they have been so swiftly and overwhelmingly condemned by fans the world over.

“We believe that any such ‘competition’ would dramatically undermine the global appeal of football and would be financially catastrophic for all but a very tiny minority.

“The proposals we have seen, assembled by a small, self-selected group of very wealthy clubs, appear to be a cynical and very worrying attempt to thwart the core principle of sporting merit which rightly underpins European football. They represent a clear and present danger to the sport we all love.

“Now, more than ever, given what we have all been through over the past year, governments, together with the game’s governing bodies and leagues, need to work together to do what is right and protect the very essence of the game.

“The SPFL stands ready to support all efforts to fight for the principles of solidarity, sporting competition and fairness which lie at the very heart of the game.”

The proposal is being driven by 12 clubs from England, Spain and Italy: Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City; Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid; Juventus, Internazionale and AC Milan.

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