FIFA aims to take back control with expansion of the Club World Cup

During the latest FIFA council meeting held in Miami, FIFA President Gianni Infantino stated that the Club World Cup will be trialled with 24 teams during the summer of 2021.

Replacing the current Club World Cup, which is held annually in December and is composed of 7 participating teams, the new tournament take the place in the footballing calendar of the Confederations Cup – usually played by 8 international teams a year before the World Cup in the international tournament’s host country.

In the past, there’s been quite a bit of discussion about renovating the Club World Cup. With the UEFA Champions League sitting on the top of the food chain when it comes to club tournaments, it is natural enough for FIFA to want to revamp their own set-piece tournament and hammer home the global prestige of the game.

European clubs, though, aren’t happy about the fact that a new 24-team tournament would be held at a time when most players would usually be taking a break. They have even threatened to boycott a new tournament – something which would surely hurt the viability of the change.

The global nature of football’s popularity makes a revamped Club World Cup an attractive prospect for FIFA, and would be an especially useful prospect for the governing body to stamp its authority on the world game – especially in club form. But finding a place for it in the calendar looks like it will prove difficult.

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Darpan Mangwani
Darpan Mangwani 24 posts

Darpan is an avid sports & marketing fan and shares his thoughts on industry-impacting news. Connect with him on LinkedIn!

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