The FIFA and UEFA prior authorisation rules and the European Super League in light of competition law: A red card?

Sammanfattning

This thesis scrutinises the concept of the European Super League in light of EU competition law and aims to provide an answer to the question whether the rules on prior authorisation by FIFA and UEFA infringe Article 101 and/or Article 102 TFEU, and whether the European Super League itself infringes Article 101 TFEU. The outcome of this thesis is that both questions must be answered in the affirmative. FIFA’s and UEFA’s rules on prior authorisation amount to a restriction of competition by object under Article 101(1) TFEU and abuse of a dominant position under Article 102 TFEU, as the rules restrict market access. Moreover, the rules are disproportionate, seeing that they do not set out any criteria regarding the approval of prior authorisation requests and are not subject to restrictions, obligations and review. Would the European Super League be executed in the way it was announced in 2021, it would restrict competition by effect under Article 101 TFEU as it would allow the founding clubs to increase their market power. The European Super League agreement cannot be justified as it is disproportionate and could damage the competitive structure of the market.