SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster has thrown his support behind European football's domestic leagues after a cabal of super-rich clubs announced their intention to form a breakaway 'Super League'.
The new competition will be comprised of England's so-called 'Big Six' - Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham - as well as AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus of Italy, and Spanish trio Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Real Madrid.
An additional three spots are believed to be vacant for the Super League. German pair Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund were invited to be founding members but declined, as did French champions Paris Saint-Germain.
The decision from the superclubs, news of which broke late on Sunday evening when the clubs involved released coordinated statements, has sent shockwaves reverberating around the top levels of the sport in Europe.
UEFA have warned that any club that joins the Super League will be banned from taking part in UEFA competitions like the Champions League, the Europa League and the European Championships.
League chiefs in England, Italy and Spain have also threatened to ban any clubs that defect from their domestic divisions.
In a statement released on Monday afternoon, SPFL chief executive Doncaster outlined his opposition to the Super League proposal - branding the development "a clear and present danger to the sport we all love."
The statement read: "The SPFL stands alongside UEFA, the European Leagues, the English Premier League and the overwhelming majority of the game’s stakeholders in vehemently opposing the proposed European Super League.
“These proposals, or any like them, would have an enormously damaging impact on the very fabric of our sport at all levels. It is no surprise they have been so swiftly and overwhelmingly condemned by fans the world over.
“We believe that any such ‘competition’ would dramatically undermine the global appeal of football and would be financially catastrophic for all but a very tiny minority.
“The proposals we have seen, assembled by a small, self-selected group of very wealthy clubs, appear to be a cynical and very worrying attempt to thwart the core principle of sporting merit which rightly underpins European football. They represent a clear and present danger to the sport we all love.
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“Now, more than ever, given what we have all been through over the past year, governments, together with the game’s governing bodies and leagues, need to work together to do what is right and protect the very essence of the game.
“The SPFL stands ready to support all efforts to fight for the principles of solidarity, sporting competition and fairness which lie at the very heart of the game.”
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