FIFPro, the union for professional soccer players worldwide, and the 45-member World Leagues Association have served notice to FIFA, demanding alterations to what they assert is an overstuffed calendar.
In a joint letter viewed by the BBC and AP, FIFA was criticized for “unilateral decisions that benefit its own competitions and commercial interests,” which include adding and expanding competitions. The 2025 Club World Cup — an event currently set to be held in the U.S. in June and July 2025 — was specifically cited as an event needing to change.
The letter calls the current global calendar “beyond saturation,” adding that “players are being pushed beyond their limits, with significant injury risks and impacts on their welfare.”
Previously, the Club World Cup had involved only seven teams: the winning team from the top club tournament in each of the world’s six confederations, plus one entrant from the host nation of that year’s tournament. FIFPro blasted the Club World Cup expansion when it was announced, and has apparently not gotten a satisfactory response from FIFA.
The 2025 edition, however, has been massively expanded, with 32 places. Illustrating the letter’s point, a report from The Athletic said that the event would take place during the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup, also being held in the United States.
Additionally, FIFA plans to resurrect the old Intercontinental Cup this year, which will feature a structure along very similar lines as the old Club World Cup. The letter urged FIFA to reconsider, or even abandon, plans to hold that event.
Competition calendar congestion growing
The letter comes as competitions grow or expand in seemingly every direction.
All three of UEFA’s men’s club competitions will expand next season, while the Asian Football Confederation’s rebrand of its top competition (which will be called the AFC Champions League Elite from 2024-25) will feature fewer teams, but requires each participant to play more games. Going along with those plans, the AFC is also adding a Europa League-esque competition called the AFC Champions League 2.
Concacaf has expanded the Concacaf Champions Cup starting with this year’s edition, while in the U.S. there remains a simmering conflict between MLS and U.S. Soccer over whether the top-flight league’s clubs should have to play in the U.S. Open Cup.
FIFPro and the World Leagues Association also demanded a chance to reconsider the calendar for when internationals must be released from their clubs during windows for national team play.
The AP quoted the letter as explicitly including the threat of “legal action against FIFA” should the governing body ignore requests to address the issues.
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