Sport
The president of the Spanish League says that the new format of the Club World Cup, in which Benfica and FC Porto will participate, is not good, “not even for FIFA“, arguing that the expansion of the competition to 32 teams “only serves to cause disorganization “.
Javier Tebas
Europa Press News
The president of Spanish football leagueJavier Tebas, asked the president of the FIFAGianni Infantino, to remove the 2025 Club World Cup from the international calendar, “because it is not necessary for players and clubs”.
Tebas considered that the new format of the Club World Cup, in which Benfica and FC Porto will participate, is not good, “not even for FIFA”, arguing that the expansion of the competition to 32 teams “only serves to cause disorganization”.
“You know you don’t have the sponsorships you anticipated and that the leagues and the players’ union don’t want this World Cup. Take it away now [do calendário]”, demanded Tebas, who announced the body’s return to the Association of European Leagues, from which it had withdrawn in March 2023, in protest at the inaction against FIFA rules.
They accuse FIFA of “abusing its dominant position”
The announcement by the president of La Liga comes one day after the association, chaired by Portuguese Pedro Proença, filed a formal complaint with the European Commission against FIFA, together with the International Federation of Professional Footballers (FIFPRO), due to the overload of the calendar International.
The two organizations accuse FIFA of “abuse of a dominant position” and the complaint filed in Brussels directly concerns the expansion of international competitionsof which the 2026 World Cup and the 2025 Club World Cup stand out.
“The complaint explains how FIFA’s imposition of decisions on the international calendar constitutes an abuse of a dominant position and violates European Union law. [UE]”, indicates the statement, warning of the “conflict of interests” that exists between the functions of the sport’s regulatory body and event organizer.
The association led by the president of the Portuguese Professional Football League and the footballers’ representative recall the decisions of the European courts in the cases of the Superliga and former French international Lassana Diarra, contrary to FIFA’s intentions.
