Apple has today announced a new four-part documentary series on the Super League scandal that rocked European soccer. It comes from the team that produced The Last Dance, 30 for 30, and O.J. Made in America.
Super League: The War for Football is a four-part series coming on January 13 documenting the “high stakes battle that is set off when plans for a breakaway league emerge and the past, present, and future of European football collide, leaving the game’s most powerful leaders to defend, or upend, the traditions of the sport.”
The show promises unprecedented access to league presidents, club owners, and the architects behind the controversial super league itself. “The docuseries brings fans the yet untold story of how and why this idea was hatched and the battle plans that were formed to fight it,” Apple says.
What was the Super League controversy
The European Super League, or The Super League, was a European club football project created to rival the UEFA Champions League in April 2021. It was a breakaway league that would feature 20 clubs, including 15 permanent members who could not be relegated or eliminated from the league. The big draw for clubs was access to solidarity payments from a 10 billion euro pot and a 3.5 billion infrastructure investment plan meant to offset the COVID-19 pandemic.
The proposal was met with almost universal condemnation from the world of soccer, with major domestic leagues such as the Premier League speaking out against the move.
As backlash intensified, major clubs including all of the English teams, both Milan clubs, and Athletico Madrid pulled out, leaving just Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Juventus.
Many clubs were forced to issue contrite apologies to fans in order to repair relationships with disgruntled fans who felt betrayed by their owners.
The new Apple TV Plus documentary promises to chart this chaotic run, as the trailer below reveals.