FIFA LEGAL THREAT OVER BURNOUT

FIFA has been threatened with legal action by world leagues and player unions if it does not reschedule the 2025 Club World Cup.

A letter to FIFA president Gianni Infantino (inset) says the sport’s schedule is now “beyond saturation”.

It says calendar changes such as the addition of the new 32-team Club World Cup – due to be played between June 15 and July 13 – have created “economic harm” to domestic leagues and have pushed players “beyond their limits”. It calls on FIFA Council to reschedule the Club World Cup and to reopen talks on the international calendar for the period up to 2030. “Should FIFA refuse to formally commit to resolving the issues... at its upcoming council, we shall be compelled to advise our members on the options available to them, both individually and collectively, to proactively safeguard their interests,” the letter states.

“These options include legal action against FIFA, on which we have now commissioned external expert advice.”

The letter has been sent by the World Leagues Association and world players’ union FIFPRO, which respectively count the Premier League and the Professional Footballers’ Association among their members. The leagues and unions accused FIFA of “consistently making unilateral decisions that benefit its own competitions and commercial interests, while negatively affecting national leagues and players”.

FIFA has not yet issued any comment on the letter.

But sources close to the governing body say the tournament dates allow sufficient time between the final and the season start dates for many domestic leagues.