A group of Europe's elite clubs are ready to walk away from the Champions League and play in a new Super League, drawing a furious response from UEFA.
European football has closed ranks, threatening to ban any clubs that join a breakaway competition after the spectre of a European Super League re-emerged on the eve of a vote on Champions League reforms.
Britain's prime minister, Boris Johnson, warned on Monday morning that the move would strike at the heart of English football:
"Plans for a European Super League would be very damaging for football and we support football authorities in taking action.
"They would strike at the heart of the domestic game, and will concern fans across the country.
"The clubs involved must answer to their fans and the wider footballing community before taking any further steps."
UEFA said on Sunday that they had learned that a group of English, Spanish and Italian clubs "may be planning to announce their creation of a closed, so-called Super League."
Multiple media reports, not denied by any of the clubs, who have remained silent, said that the Premier League's 'big six' - Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham - had signed up to the plans.
Spain's Barcelona and Real Madrid and Italy's Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan have also been linked to the plan for a competition but no German or French clubs have yet to be associated with the breakaway.
The news came less than 24 hours before UEFA is due to sign off on its own plans for an expanded and restructured Champions League on Monday.
UEFA issued a strong statement jointly with English, Spanish and Italian leagues and football federations, saying they were ready to use "all measures" to confront any breakaway and saying any participating clubs would be banned from domestic leagues, such as the Premier League. UEFA's statement includes:
"The clubs concerned will be banned from playing in any other competition at domestic, European or world level, and their players could be denied the opportunity to represent their national teams.
"We thank those clubs in other countries, especially the French and German clubs, who have refused to sign up to this.
"We call on all lovers of football, supporters and politicians, to join us in fighting against such a project if it were to be announced. This persistent self-interest of a few has been going on for too long. Enough is enough."
The moves were condemned by football authorities across Europe and former players such as Manchester United's ex-captain Gary Neville who called it "an absolute disgrace" and said the club owners were motivated by "pure greed".
Top French club Paris St Germain have not been said to have signed up to the plan and French President Emmanuel Macron also raised his voice against the breakaway:
"The president of the republic welcomes the position of French clubs to refuse to participate to a (sic) European football Super League project that threatens the principle of solidarity and sporting merit."
Earlier on Sunday, the board of Italy's Serie A league held an emergency meeting on the threatened Super League.
A Serie A source told Reuters that the league had recently become aware of the plans for a breakaway project.
There have been reports of a breakaway for a number of years and they returned in January with several media reporting a document had been produced outlining the plans for a 20-team league including Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona.
It has led FIFA and UEFA to warn that they would ban any players involved in a breakaway from playing in the World Cup or European Championship.
The move is a surprise after the European Club Association (ECA), which represents 246 of the continent's leading clubs, gave their backing to UEFA's Champions League reforms which are on the agenda for Monday's executive committee meeting.
-- with AAP