- Next summer, the FIFA Club World Cup, expanded to 32 teams, will be held in the United States.
- Clubs are concerned the Premier League will be scaled back to tackle fixture congestion
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There are reported concerns that the expansion of the Club World Cup could mean FIFA wants to introduce 18-team leagues around the world, including the Premier League.
Football’s governing body, led by president Gianni Infantino, has announced plans to hold a 32-team tournament in the United States next summer to determine the world’s best club, with Manchester City, Real Madrid and Chelsea among the teams set to take part.
However, clubs in Europe’s top leagues have significant concerns about the strain this will place on players, with Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta recently highlighting this.
According to The Sun, clubs are concerned that FIFA may address the issue by reducing the number of teams in each league to 18, meaning each club would play 34 games instead of 38.
One source said: “We all think FIFA’s ultimate aim is to find a way to drop us to 18th place.”
“The working group would no doubt argue that there is too much domestic football and that the number of clubs should be reduced from 20 to 18, and that the international game would have the least impact on players.”
“We wouldn’t be surprised if they have already written their conclusions.”
This comes after players’ associations and global leagues threatened legal action if FIFA did not change the location of the expanded 2025 Club World Cup.
Premier League and La Liga leaders have also threatened to pull teams unless revised competitions are rescheduled.
Last month, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters declared that football was at a “tipping point” and that players were being asked to play more games than ever before.
“When you overtax your schedule and your players, obviously at some point you’re going to have to give something up,” Masters said.
“We’re at a tipping point. The feedback we’re getting from players is there’s too much football being played and the continued expansion continues.”
The Club World Cup will take place from 15 June to 13 July 2025, denying some clubs the opportunity to recover in the off-season and prepare for the new Premier League campaign.
If FIFA were to implement the rule, leagues such as the Bundesliga, Portuguese league and Belgian league would not be affected as they already have 18 or fewer teams competing in each league.