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April 25 (UPI) -- UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin said Sunday that all 12 teams will be "held responsible" for initially joining the European Super League last week. Ceferin noted that some teams will face lesser punishments for quickly opting out of the proposed soccer league.
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The 12 clubs -- six from England and three from both Spain and Italy -- announced April 18 that they would be breaking away to form the Super League, a move that immediately drew almost universal opposition from fans, players, managers and government officials.
Following protests, all six English teams reversed course and canceled their plans to join the league. The stunning reversals came within 48 hours of their initial announcements about forming the Super League.
Spanish club Atletico Madrid and Serie A sides Inter Milan and AC Milan each followed suit and revoked their decisions to join the ESL.
Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus currently haven't formally withdrawn from the competition.
"Everyone has to take consequences for what they did and we cannot pretend nothing happened," Ceferin told reporters. "You cannot do something like that and just say, 'I've been punished because everybody hates me.' They don't have problems because of anyone else but themselves. It's not OK what they did and we will see in the next few days what we have to do.
"But for me it's a clear difference between the English clubs and the other six. They pulled out first, they admitted they made a mistake. You have to have some greatness to say, 'I was wrong.'
"For me there are three groups of this 12 -- the English Six, who went out first, then the other three [Atletico Madrid, AC Milan, Inter] after them and then the ones who feel that Earth is flat and they think the Super League still exists [Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus]. And there is a big difference between those. But everyone will be held responsible."
Ceferin also praised fans who protested and helped get clubs to exit the Super League. Hundreds of Chelsea fans gathered outside Stamford Bridge before a game against Brighton on Monday, and similar protests were seen at Anfield, Old Trafford and the Emirates.
"Look, honestly speaking I was completely impressed by the reaction of the fans, the whole football community and not just the football community but I would say society. I never have seen this," he said. "UEFA did its part, the clubs that stood with us did their part.
"And of course the U.K. government out of all did the big part. But by far the biggest part was done by fans."
The 12 announced ESL participants said they would play midweek games while "continuing to compete in their respective national leagues." The clubs also insisted the Super League would provide "greater financial support for the football pyramid."
The proposal, however, was met with widespread criticism throughout Europe. Unlike the current Champions League tournament, where teams must qualify through their domestic leagues, the founding ESL clubs would guarantee themselves a spot in the new competition each year.
The English Football Association, the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the Italian Football Federation, the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A issued a joint statement last week in opposition to the Super League, calling it a "cynical project."
UEFA and the federations said the ESL was "founded on the self-interest of a few clubs at a time when society needs solidarity more than ever."
After the opt-outs, the Super League proposal was put on standby.
