The European Super League is on the brink before it even manages to launch.

The state of play: Manchester City was the first to confirm Tuesday it "formally enacted the procedures to withdraw from the group developing plans for a European Super League. Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur quickly followed suit.

• Chelsea is also reportedly preparing to exit just two days after the league announced its formation, ESPN notes.

The big picture: The league has been met with withering backlash.

• Roughly 1,000 Chelsea fans protested their club's inclusion ahead of Tuesday's Premier League game against Brighton.

When news broke of Chelsea's exit from the league, the fans jubilantly cheered, "We saved football!"

Between the lines: Players on the member clubs didn't know they'd be in the league before it was announced.

• "I can only say my personal opinion: I don't like it," said Liverpool's James Milner Monday. "Hopefully it doesn't happen."

The bottom line: The league keeps the unfairness of the U.S. system, Axios' Felix Salmon wrote Monday morning, and takes away the elements that help to even things out.

• Soccer has seen no shortage of greedy owners buying trophies, but it's never been as brazen as this.