The Premier League complains to FIFA about new Club World Cup

The Premier League has lodged a formal complaint with FIFA over its failure to consult with leagues and clubs over the expansion of the Club World Cup to 32 teams.

According to the schedule of the new Club World Cup format, Manchester City and Chelsea are expected to play up to seven games within four weeks in the summer of 2025, with the final taking place three weeks before the start of the subsequent domestic season.

It is reported that the Premier League signed a complaint letter on behalf of the World League Forum and sent the complaint letter to FIFA through the forum. The World League Forum is a lobby group representing 44 top domestic leagues including La Liga, Serie A and the Bundesliga.

The letter is believed to be strongly worded, accusing FIFA of failing in its responsibilities as world football's governing body and claiming they prioritized scheduling more games to generate more revenue without consulting leagues and clubs. The commercial value of the revamped Club World Cup is currently unclear as broadcasting rights and sponsorship deals have yet to be sold, but with many of the world's top clubs already qualifying including Manchester City, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich Billions of pounds of revenue are certain to be generated.

FIFA is committed to a prize fund worth £2 billion, with all participating clubs receiving £50 million and the champions receiving more than £100 million.
In their letter, the World League Forum claimed FIFA was ignoring the best interests of clubs and overloading fixtures, putting the health of players at risk.
 
Players union chief executive Maheta Molango made a similar point on Sunday, saying players were being used as pawns and describing the Club World Cup as ridiculous.
 
Maheta Molango said: "Players have become casualties in the battle for dominance between football's governing bodies, with no one willing to back down or collaborate on a sustainable schedule. These decisions have consequences, not just for the players who are pushed to their limits. The impact, but also the impact on the future quality of these games, is that players are injured or withdrawn from games because of the ridiculous demands being placed on them as they figure out how to manage these situations."