Source:REUTERS/Jairo Cassiani
[Saba Sports News] According to British media reports, UEFA will oppose and block any attempts by FIFA President Gianni Infantino to expand the revamped FIFA Club World Cup to more than 32 teams or change it to a biennial event. Infantino said earlier this week that the number of participants in the next edition of the Club World Cup “could” exceed 32. He is also said to want the tournament to be held more frequently than every four years, with his ultimate goal being to stage it every two years or even annually. Any expansion attempts, such as increasing the field to 48 teams as seen in the men’s and women’s World Cups, will be strongly opposed by UEFA. The European governing body will also reject raising the number of European participants from 12 or holding the competition more regularly. Sources have also insisted that European clubs share the same stance.
The editor believes that the controversy over the revamped Club World Cup is no accident, but a concentrated reflection of the long-standing conflicts between FIFA and UEFA over the distribution of event resources. In recent years, FIFA has continuously pushed for reforms to the Club World Cup to seize the commercial market, while UEFA has consistently taken protecting the interests of European club competitions as its core position. The two sides have had differences in various areas, including the layout of the Champions League and the scheduling of competition windows.