04 Mar 2024

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Press release 04 March 2024 - 72% OF EUROPEAN FOOTBALL FANS SUPPORT THE SUPER LEAGUE SAYS NEW REPRESENTATIVE SURVEY

  • Findings show predominant desire for the start of a European Super League across all age groups and particularly amongst younger football fans in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
  • Supporters of clubs Juventus FC, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Atlético de Madrid, Manchester City, Benfica, Porto, Chelsea, and PSG are amongst the most enthusiastic supporters.
  • The decision of the European Court of Justice to end UEFA's monopoly is broadly welcomed by a strong majority of fans.

Paris (France), 4 March 2024 – A new study published today and conducted by the French institute Opinion Way for A22 Sports shows evidence of substantial support for the European Super League across a diverse demographic of football fans in eight significant European nations. The survey indicates that 72 percent of football fans in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom are in favour of the creation of a European Super League. The study is based on a representative sample of 6,458 football fans aged 15 and over who were interviewed in early February 2024. The questions asked refer to the new Super League proposed by A22 after the ruling of the European Court of Justice on 21 December 2023.

Key Findings of the Survey are the following:

  • In total, 72 percent of all interviewed football fans from eight major European countries are in favour of creating a European Super League with Spain (84 percent), Portugal (81 percent), and Italy (80 percent) being the most supportive. In other countries, the idea of starting the Super League is still embraced by a majority of fans. This includes 75 percent in France and Belgium, 67 percent in the Netherlands, 65 percent in the United Kingdom, and 61 percent in Germany.
  • The Super League received very high approval rates by younger generations in particular – an age group that is currently turning away from watching live broadcasting of European football competitions. Especially fans aged 15 to 24 (86 percent) and 25 to 35 (81 percent) are in favour of the European Super League proposal.
  • When asked why they are in favour of a European Super League, football fans most frequently state that the proposal is a good idea, delivers an “innovative format” as well as a fairer and more exciting competition than the current system. The Super League aims to solve the issue of too many inconsequential matches in the current European competition by delivering exciting matches from the first to the last day of the season.
  • Amongst club supporters those of Juventus (96 percent), Real Madrid (93 percent), FC Barcelona (89 percent), Atlético de Madrid (88 percent), Manchester City (85 percent), Benfica Lisbon (84 percent), FC Porto (83 percent), Chelsea (81 percent), and PSG (81 percent) are the strongest supporters of the new Super League.
  • Noticeable is that in an increasingly fragmented media landscape where TV subscriptions to watch live football are becoming more expensive, fans who are subscribers of pay-TV are more likely to support the Super League (76 percent) than non-subscribers (69 percent). Unsurprisingly, 91 percent of surveyed fans like the idea of streaming all matches of the Super League for free on the UNIFY platform.
  • The landmark decision of the European Court of Justice to end UEFA's monopoly in European club football competitions is supported by 77 percent of surveyed football fans, with the approval rate ranging from 71 percent in Germany to 87 percent in Spain.

Bruno Jeanbart, Vice President of Opinion Way Institute, said: “The representative survey we conducted in accordance with the latest scientific standards amongst European football fans is the first study on the perception of the new Super League proposal. We found evidence that there is a broad and strong positive sentiment towards the Super League amongst fans which means that one cannot say that fans in general are opposing the project, nor countries out of the commonly called ‘big 5’.”

Bernd Reichart, CEO of A22, said: “We are actively engaged in an open dialogue around our proposal for the future of European club football with clubs and other relevant football stakeholders. The positive feedback we have received in our intensified talks with clubs since the CJEU ruling gives us great confidence that we are on the right track. As part of our dialogue, it was also essential for us to understand the views of the most important stakeholder group– the European football fans. We have evidence that the desire for a European Super League as a much more exciting alternative to the current European club football competition is stronger than ever.”

The survey’s findings underline that European club football is at a crucial juncture: The unappealable ruling of the highest European Court in December effectively ended UEFA’s 70-year monopoly and opened the market for pan-European club football competitions that can now be openly discussed, organized, and governed by football clubs without the threat of sanctions. In this pivotal moment, A22 proposed a European football league consisting of three tiers for the top 64 men’s clubs and the top 32 women’s clubs based on promotion and relegation and firmly rooted in domestic leagues. Additionally, through the creation of a state-of-the-art digital direct-to-fan platform called UNIFY, all Super League matches will be streamed globally for free to significantly enhance fan experience and accessibility.

The study's results are available in the complementing PDF document.

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