To Super League, or not to Super League? ??

Super League returns?

The ill-fated European Super League (ESL) reared its head once again this week, as the Financial Times reported on an EU Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling related to the project.

On Thursday, the EU’s highest court found that European football governing body Uefa and global equivalent Fifa had “acted unlawfully in threatening to impose sanctions on players and clubs that joined the European Super League in 2021.”

It did not suggest that the project must now be approved, however, but did challenge the fundamental powers of Uefa and Fifa, demanding that the organisations ditch “arbitrary” rules and open themselves up more to competition.

In a similar but separate ruling, the ECJ also found that the International Skating Union had acted unlawfully when it threatened to punish athletes for seeking to take part in a competition not endorsed by the governing body.

As a result of the rulings, “the organisation of sports competition is no longer under the monopoly of the sports federations,” sports competition lawyer and lecturer Mark Orth told the FT.

When the ESL project was first announced, it faced significant pushback from several clubs, as well as football’s governing bodies.

Within days it had been all but abandoned, with many believing that would be an end to the story.

With this ruling, however, the powers of Fifa and Uefa have been seriously challenged, and it seems the organisations must now operate more firmly within the scope of European competition law.

The ruling cannot be appealed against and “opens the door for new entrants to launch rival competitions and threatens to upend the status quo in European football.”

Whether that means the European Super League will ever actually become a reality remains to be seen.

American bettors too bad to back

Markets Insider this week brought us the story of a change of heart from “legendary short seller” Jim Chanos.

Chanos, according to the article, has closed a short position against US online sports betting market leader DraftKings, “after seeing how bad US gamblers were at betting.”

The change comes as “online gambling platforms have offered riskier forms of betting during games,” Markets Insider reported, presumably making a nod towards the growing popularity of so-called same-game parlays.

Chanos first opened a short position against DraftKings in mid-2021 amid scepticism about the firm’s business model, after noting that marketing spend was fast outstripping the amount of revenue it was generating.

Since then, however, “the betting numbers have continued to be strong in the US, stronger than we thought they’d be,” Chanos said.

Not known for mincing his words, he added: “The thing that we underestimated – that I think is going to be a benefit for all these companies for a while anyway – is what bad bettors the US gamblers are.”

The change of heart is not to say Chanos regrets his former position – his DraftKings short generated $10m for his hedge fund before he closed the position, and not before time.

Since closing the short position, DraftKings shares have more than tripled in value, as the business turned to profit in Q2 2023.

Chanos also previously held short positions against Enron and Tesla, but has since closed his hedge funds, claiming that “the marketplace has become difficult to predict.”

If his new belief in US betting is to be trusted, however, then one thing’s still for sure: American bettors are set to keep on losing.

All I want for Christmas is…

If you’re scrambling for last-minute Christmas gift ideas, Business Insider (BI) has delved into what the super-rich are placing under their trees this year.

For billionaires, it’s all about surpassing their last jaw-dropping gift. Forget Target budgets—this crowd aims for the?“best of the best,”regardless of the cost.

Think Hermès, Chanel, and Rolex — the holy trinity of luxury requests.

“They just want to see what the best of the best looks like,” Elisabeth Brown, a New York-based client manager at travel and lifestyle concierge company Knightsbridge, told BI.

“There’s not really a budget — they just want what they want and would like to make it happen.”

But it’s not confined to material possessions. Experiences?are increasingly taking centre stage.

We’re talking meeting celeb DJs, cooking classes with Michelin-starred chefs, or renting out private islands like it’s a weekend getaway.

Or better yet, the ultimate status symbol for the billionaire class: space travel!

While some of the ultra-rich express concerns about climate change, it’s not in the way you might expect.

BI highlighted a race for clients to witness things before they vanish.

“Instead of opting for a typical superyacht in St. Barths, they’re chartering an expedition superyacht to explore glaciers in Antarctica or Patagonia, or jetting off to Australia to admire the Great Barrier Reef,” according to the piece.

Yet amidst all this opulence, there’s also a growing trend of moving away from materialism.

Some are skipping the grand gestures for Secret Santa with a $10 spending limit, keeping it all about spending time together.

Looks like even the uber-rich have discovered that money can’t buy everything. Merry Christmas!

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