At least two French clubs set to feature in planned European Super League, says report

Paris: “At least two French clubs” are set to be involved in a European Super League every year, a source close to the 12 founding clubs of the planned breakaway competition told AFP on Monday without revealing who they would be or how they would be selected. The 12 clubs who have come out as founding members include the English Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ as well as Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid from Spain and Italian trio Juventus, Inter and AC Milan. The absence of French and German teams is notable, despite Bayern Munich and Qatar-owned Paris Saint-Germain reaching last season’s Champions League final. However it is understood three more teams will join as founding clubs, with five more clubs qualifying annually to make it a 20-team competition. That could include the winners of Ligue 1. In contrast, Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has insisted his club and Bayern – who are both on the board of the European Club Association (ECA) – are both opposed to the breakaway plan. The ECA said on Sunday it “strongly opposes” plans for the league, and Watzke said the German clubs had “presented points of view that have been 100 percent identical throughout the discussions”.