Premier League clubs alerted as FIFA eye new clubs' competition

Premier League clubs are alerted over FIFA's latest plan to introduce 'European Premier League' competition

According to reports the new set-up has already called the interest of sponsors who are ready to back the show up with billions of dollars closing to £4.6billion.

Also, it has  been claimed that dozen teams from England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain are in negotiations about becoming founder members of the competition.

The new set-up is expected to comprise up to 18 teams, and involve fixtures played during the regular European season.

The top-placed teams in the league would play in a knockout format to conclude the tournament, with prize money for the winners expected to be worth hundreds of millions of pounds each year.

One football industry figure said that a formal announcement about the plans was possible as soon as the end of this month, although on Tuesday a number of key details - including the full list of participating clubs - had yet to be finalised and the plans could still fall apart.

The source described it as "potentially the most important development in world club football for decades".

A FIFA spokesperson said: "FIFA does not wish to comment and participate in any speculation about topics which come up every now and then and, for which, institutional structures and regulatory frameworks are well in place at national, European and global level."

But according to insiders, a handful of English sides have been approached about joining the league, with the candidates comprising Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur.