Club World Cup conflict.
FIFA, ECA at odds over future of annual tournament
EUROPE’S FOOTBALL clubs are pushing back at the grand expansion plans of the sport’s governing bodies, calling for fewer matches, mandator y rest periods and alignment of confederation tournaments.
Presenting a streamlined agenda aimed at protecting players at its general assembly yesterday, the European Club Association (ECA) wouldn’t even discuss FIFA’s proposal for an expanded Club World Cup in June 2021.
“It is not about adding competition in this moment,” ECA President Andrea Agnelli said. “To us, the priorities are addressing the calendar post-2024.”
Agnelli said the players, which he described as “the main actors,” must be respected.
“It’s ensuring that throughout the calendar, players have the time to rest and/or train,” said Agnelli, who is also the president of six-time defending I talian champions Juventus.
“They’re playing week in, week out, two or three games a week, be it at club level or a national team level,” Agnelli added. “So when we think about the calendar going forward, we must also take into consideration weeks when players can actually rest and/or train. So reducing the overall number of games.”
The Club World Cup is currently an annual competition held each December featuring seven teams. FIFA President Gianni Infantino would like to expand the competition to include 24 clubs and move it to June as a quadrennial event, similar to the World Cup.
But June is when players’ and coaches’ contracts expire and generally a transitional period for clubs.
“There are many things around that, but mainly we almost don’t know anything about it,” UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin told The Associated Press. “The stakeholders are not informed properly yet, so it’s much too early to say anything.
Ceferin added that he “doubts” the tournament could come together for 2021.
But Infantino isn’t giving up. “The Club World Cup is a great competition already and we are discussing whether we can make it even greater,” Infantino said.
Already approved for this year’s World Cup in Russia, the video assistant referee ( VAR) won’t be used in the Champions League until next season — at the earliest.
“It’s too soon for the Champions League to start this season. We are not ready, referees are not ready, fans are not ready,” Ceferin said. “It’s not the competition to have a trial.
“We will start training the referees and educating the fans, and if everything goes fine it might happen next season,” the UEFA president added.
Agnelli, however, suggested that the VAR might not be included in the Champions League until the 2019-20 season.
“It’s too soon for the Champions League to start this season. We are not ready, referees are not ready, fans are not ready.”