European Super League court ruling sparks a question: When will we stop lying to ourselves about football?

Brighton & Hove Albion players warm up wearing a T-shirt with a message in protest against the European Super League. Photo / Getty Images

OPINION

Football has arrived at an uncomfortable realisation; what was once a beautiful game is now a pocket-liner and plaything for those who seem to care little about it.

A court ruling has found Uefa and Fifa acted unlawfully in blocking the creation of the European Super League, reviving what was protested against by fans and players as a shameless cash-grab.

Clubs issued apologies, were fined, and reassured their supporters that it was only an idea – how naïve they were to listen.

You’d think that winning the most prestigious club competition in the world 14 times would give you a sense of decorum, yet Real Madrid saw a cheque and little else when throwing their considerable weight behind the rebel league.

Los Blancos are famous for their Get Rich or Die Tryin’ attitude to football – as emphasised by their now-defunct “Galacticos” transfer policy – yet reading that the most decorated club in European Cup football continue to push for a competition that has no benefit to any other, save the chosen elite, still leaves genuine admirers of the sport asking unsavoury questions.

At what point do we stop pretending the objective of football is to score goals?

When do we recognise that it has long been the primary function of a football club to create revenue, rather than put a ball into a net?

Madrid president, Florentino Pérez, said that “Football and its fans have triumphed”, following the ruling – yet it was outrage by fans that led to all but two of the original 12 clubs withdrawing from the proposed Super League.

The irony of Madrid and their nemesis Barcelona uniting under the same banner would be humorous if this situation weren’t so dire.

The Catalonians do not surprise in their pursuit of the Super League, a well-documented financial fall from grace saw them lose the player it was unimaginable to see playing for any other club: Lionel Messi. ‘La Pulga’ at least had the decency to turn down the ludicrous offer that was made to him by Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal.

You cannot in earnest argue that self-elected superpowers (some of whom are yet to lift a Champions League trophy) playing amongst themselves with guaranteed entry each year is in the best interest of fans – or football.

If the Super League does eventuate, at least we will have one truth. We will finally be honest with ourselves and acknowledge that dollars, euros and pounds are the reason this sport is bigger than any other.