Juventus has been readmitted to the European Club Association following the Serie A club’s unsuccessful attempt to establish a continental Super League, announced by the organization’s chief, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, on Thursday.
Italy’s most successful club had previously left the ECA to advocate for the European Super League, which was launched in April 2021 but rapidly fell apart due to public backlash and threats from governing bodies UEFA and FIFA.
“I am pleased to welcome Juventus back to our family. Now, all top division clubs in over 20 countries are ECA members,” Al-Khelaifi, who is also president of Paris Saint-Germain, said during the ECA’s General Assembly in Athens.
Juve, then led by Super League advocate Andrea Agnelli, aimed to be one of 12 founding clubs, alongside notable teams like Real Madrid, Barcelona, and several from England’s Premier League.
Since the original Super League project collapsed, Agnelli has faced two lengthy bans from Italian football after the country’s football federation found him and Juventus guilty of multiple financial offenses.
The Super League concept is still technically alive and is being promoted by A22 Sports Management, which is pushing for a revamped version of the breakaway continental competition featuring 64 teams across three divisions.
In December of last year, the European Union’s Court of Justice ruled that a ban on the Super League imposed by the existing governing bodies of the sport was contrary to EU law.