European Super League: Why this football fan will be watching

The criticism of plans for football's European Super League has been widespread since they were announced on Sunday.

Angry fans, players, the prime minister and the future king of England have all jumped in.

But what about the football supporters who don't think it would be such a bad idea?

Most have stayed silent. But Arsenal fan and YouTuber Granville Williams is brave enough to admit he will be watching the ESL if it gets the go-ahead.

"I do definitely have my reservations about it but let's be honest, as a football fan, who doesn't want to see the best teams and the best players compete on a more regular basis?" he tells Radio 1 Newsbeat.

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Twelve European clubs have signed up so far, including Arsenal. The big plan is for the ESL to host 20 clubs playing midweek games.

Granville is in the minority with his support though. A YouGov poll of 1,730 football fans found 79% opposed the idea of a breakaway league. Many have aired their frustrations on social media and some have visited grounds to protest.

He won't be doing that. The Arsenal fan agrees with Real Madrid's president Florentino Perez who says more needs to be done to bring in young people who are "no longer interested in football".

"Florentino Perez has come up for a lot of criticism but if you look at the demographics of football fans they are getting older and older," he says.

"In order for the sport to be more relevant and enticing for young people something needs to be switched up."

However, that YouGov poll found that among current football fans aged between 18 and 24, 71% were against the ESL.

Granville Williams is a regular at the Emirates Stadium

It is not clear what the switch-up would mean. Shorter games have been suggested but Granville thinks the offer of watching the best teams in Europe every week will be enough of a draw for football fans to watch.

"If we do sign up to this European Super League I will most definitely be watching the games and supporting my club," the YouTuber adds.

"I find it very hard to believe that fans of football will actually get bored of watching their teams play against the best players."

The plan is for the ESL to run alongside domestic leagues such as the Premier League but football's international governing body Fifa has warned that players taking part would be banned from all other competitions at domestic, European or world level.

If that meant his beloved Arsenal wouldn't be allowed to play in the Premier League, Granville says he would find it hard to back the new offering.

"If the ESL cannot co-exist with the Premier league then that would massively upset me," he says.

"That would be a massive stumbling block in terms of my support."

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