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Cracks have begun to appear in the stance of the clubs who signed up for the European Super League.
According to a report by Sky Sports, a board member at one of the clubs insisted that they 'will not back down', while another at a second club suggested that this 'was not what they signed up for.'
Speaking to Sky Sports on condition of anonymity, a board member at one of the European Super League's founding members admitted that generating more revenue was a motivating factor for the formation of the league.
"UEFA as a governing body are not listening to the clubs and are monopolising competitive football. The reality is the Champions League doesn't realise anywhere near as much revenue as it could. At the same time, clubs have no say over the infrastructure and governance of the competition. That has to change. The Champions League is not a commercial success. There are ways we could change that, but UEFA simply refuse to relinquish any control," he said.
He further added:
"If we don't grow our business, we are not doing our jobs properly. We're being stopped from developing our clubs. Being constantly held back has become too frustrating, hence where we find ourselves today. These frustrations can be traced back 15 or 20 years. We weren't expecting people to be jumping for joy. But what is clear is that people have not read through and carefully considered our proposals. That has been a huge frustration."
The board member, however, admitted that plans for the European Super League could be reversed if UEFA agree to further reforms of the UEFA Champions League.
Another member at one of the founding clubs of the European Super League, however, revealed that the negative fallout was not what they signed up for, likening the counter-threats to a war. He said:
"We don't want war. It's not our intention. But everyone else wants to turn it into a war. We've simply been forced to do things another way.
"We're asking people simply to take a breath. We may not all agree on how we've got to this point but this is now a reality and we have to work collaboratively if we're to find a solution.
"Public relations is important but it's not going to win or lose this fight. We knew we weren't going to win any friends on day one."
Also Read: European Super League – When personal greed destroys sporting value
The European Super League is facing as much internal crisis as it is externally
The world was rocked on Sunday when news filtered out that 12 of the biggest clubs in the world, including Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester United, had united to form a breakaway European Super League.
Criticism has been swift and harsh from all quarters for the proposed European Super League, with coaches, fans, pundits, stakeholders and ex-players all resolute in their resolve against the tournament.
However, the founding clubs have insisted there is no turning back, despite the threats and serious consequences being put forward by football's governing bodies.
Despite the public grandstanding, there have been reports of private disapproval among the founding clubs over the haphazard way the information has been handled in the media.
So far, there has not been any coherent announcement from the organizers and managers have often been forced to give explanations to the fans.
The issue of the tournament starting 'as soon as practicable' is also said to not augur well with some of the clubs who were told that the idea would only kick-off once all the minor details had been sorted out.
The future of the European Super League is still in doubt but this is undoubtedly a potentially seismic moment in the history of football.
Also Read: European Super League: Why the death of football was coming for a long time
