Topic: FIFA Club World Cup | a 32 team tournament | starting 2025 in the USA

[Egyptian36]

At this rate wouldn't be surprising in the future to see clubs having to build two teams with different managers

[The North Bank]

Only good news is that its once every 4 years, any half smart club would play their youths in june and bring in the seniors in july when pre season normally starts , at the semis/final stage.

[decosabute]

It's the maximum of 2 clubs per country (unless 3 clubs win the CL in the 4-year cycle).

If Chelsea hadn't won the CL then we would be almost guaranteed a slot (AD City would have qualified in front of us in the rankings anyway)

Cheers   

[BoRed]

I think the info is not quite right, I'm pretty sure the winner of next seasons CL will also be in it, which means we could still qualify if we won the CL next season.

No, this season's winners will qualify, next season's winners will take part four years later.

[Barneylfc∗]

Although I don't give a fuck about it, I hope by the end of next season we have qualified for 2029 

[BoRed]

Although I don't give a fuck about it, I hope by the end of next season we have qualified for 2029 

And then send the kids.

If there's any consolation from not winning the CL, it's missing out on this. I'd also argue that not taking part will significantly improve our chances of winning the PL in 2025/26.

[Brian Blessed]

I think the info is not quite right, I'm pretty sure the winner of next seasons CL will also be in it, which means we could still qualify if we won the CL next season.

This is being held at the end of that season, so any team that hasn’t qualified but wins it would have two weeks prep. That doesn’t seem possible for a 32 team tournament, I think they’d go in the next one in 2029.

[Samie]

Fluminense beat Al Ahly 2-0 in the Semi Final of the World Club Cup. Man City in the final then.

[Ocean Red]

UEFA and FIFA don't give a shit about players welfare, just lining their greedy pockets. Also in general, club tournaments are supposed to be annually, not every 4 years, that is for international football, club teams change alot over 4 years, players, managers etc, international teams in general do not. Also even playing this revamped club world cup every 4 years will not work well, basically playing nearly all the way through the year, plus international tournaments the year before and the year after. Madness, they should of just kept the club world cup with the old format and annually, otherwise it will not work well, but greed always wins unfortunately. Also with UEFA they are expanding the champions league from next season to add even more games, plus they have the nations league now also. The players welfare is extremely important to rational people, not to these greedy idiots though.

[Scottymuser]

Only good news is that its once every 4 years, any half smart club would play their youths in june and bring in the seniors in july when pre season normally starts , at the semis/final stage.

If you are a top team in Europe, the likelihood is you will be seeded - and will have 2 teams from outside of SA/Europe  (2 groups will have 3 teams, but given the "max 2 teams per league" rule, there will be a decent chunk of teams who would usually be in pot 3 in a CL draw).  So play mixed teams in the first 3 games, a bit like the Europe League.  I just don't understand all this criticism - its a max of 7 extra games, every 4 years, as a one-off, and you can probably get away with playing and rotating youngsters and second choice for at least the first 3-4 games).

A 16 team tournament may have been better, certainly - but would only mean one fewer (easy) game.

[BoRed]

If you are a top team in Europe, the likelihood is you will be seeded - and will have 2 teams from outside of SA/Europe  (2 groups will have 3 teams, but given the "max 2 teams per league" rule, there will be a decent chunk of teams who would usually be in pot 3 in a CL draw).  So play mixed teams in the first 3 games, a bit like the Europe League.  I just don't understand all this criticism - its a max of 7 extra games, every 4 years, as a one-off, and you can probably get away with playing and rotating youngsters and second choice for at least the first 3-4 games).

A 16 team tournament may have been better, certainly - but would only mean one fewer (easy) game.

The criticism is due to the fact that it ends three weeks before the next season starts, so if the players are to get any time off at all, you basically have no pre-season, which can completely wreck your next season.

[DelTrotter]

I just don't understand all this criticism

Which is baffling, the schedule needs shortening somehow not more added to it.

[ScottScott]

If they want it to be anything like a real tournament then they will make clubs submit a squad list like they do in the CL and so on. That way, it'll stop teams from doing what a few have suggested and playing kids hoping to get through and then bringing in the normal players

It's a joke of a tournament. Zero rest for anybody. It's not just players who will burn out, managers will too. FIFA and UEFA need to be burnt to the ground and rebuilt. How the fuck did the money men end up running the sport

[Ocean Red]

Also our club didn't qualify for the new revamped fifa club world cup in 2025, so we don't need to worry about it for Liverpool FC until at least 2029 now. we get a rest, the players, manager etc, in the summer of 2025.

[Black Bull Nova]

Infantino is doing as much as he possibly can to ensure Saudi club teams get on the world stage. I have every confidence that there will be 3 Saudi teams in this competition and 2 PL teams, that seems sensible doesn't it. Of course they are paying him for this and the aim is to make Saudi a powerhouse of world football by the 2030's.


The trouble is that football is a fickle thing. You can watch some of the world's (former) best players play in the saudi league at the moment but I'll bet most people (including many in Saudi) do not give a shit and would rather watch Crystal Palace v Brighton in the PL without any big names. That's why the Saudi's will never truly succeed. Football in that country will never be a great spectacle compared to the PL (or even the championship) because it's too feckin hot to play the type of football that actually entertains.


The price of everything and the value of nothing

[Robinred]

City score in the 1st minute of the final. Not really fussed about this game or competition, but as we’re linked with Andre, I’m interested to see how he fares.

(Has to be on mute again - don’t mind Savage, unlike most, but Paul Dempsey irritates me; example: “Ruben Diash”).

[tubby]

City score in the 1st minute of the final. Not really fussed about this game or competition, but as we’re linked with Andre, I’m interested to see how he fares.

How's he doing?

[keano7]

Soulless stadium, fans can’t be bothered, players can’t bothered and City winning at a canter. Yawn.

[kellan]

Zero rest for anybody. It's not just players who will burn out, managers will too.

And the fans, potentially? I don't know about anybody else, but as much as I find myself twiddling my thumbs on the occasional summer weekend, overall, I do quite enjoy having a period in which I'm not having to plan my entire life around a ball being kicked about.

[Robinred]

How's he doing?

It’s a very small sample size, against a very dominant team, but on this showing he’s very raw, and failed to track his runner on a number of occasions.

It really wouldn’t surprise me should our alleged interest in him be another club-induced ‘false flag’.

[elsewhere]

Rodri out with an injury, looked like his right knee

[The North Bank]

Rodri crunched, took a reducer from an angry brazilian. Hopefully its not too serious and he makes it for the euros in the summer.

[MonsLibpool]

Rodri will be out for a while. Looks like internal damage to his knee.

[Nitramdorf]

https://twitter.com/maxandpaddyline/status/1738290335111905762?t=2_tvGJ70wv8nNiqGwZLVxw&s=19

[JRed]

Rodri out with an injury, looked like his right knee

Shame

[drmick]

Rodri crunched, took a reducer from an angry brazilian. Hopefully its not too serious and he makes it for the euros in the summer.

I laughed at this. Subtle, but effective!

[Terry de Niro]

Rodri will be out for a while. Looks like internal damage to his knee.

Shame

Tragic.

[King_doggerel]

They've got a ready made replacement in Calvin Phillips rotting on the bench. They'll be fine.

[Black Bull Nova]

Rodri will be out for a while. Looks like internal damage to his knee.

If you traded off them winning this against Rodri getting injured I'd take the deal every day. Good day all round, now back to us......

[decosabute]

Rodri will be out for a while. Looks like internal damage to his knee.

Pep's miracle-working doctors (trusted since the Brescia days) will have him back in a couple of weeks despite ligament damage. A true Christmas miracle.

[stoa]

Infantino is doing as much as he possibly can to ensure Saudi club teams get on the world stage. I have every confidence that there will be 3 Saudi teams in this competition and 2 PL teams, that seems sensible doesn't it. Of course they are paying him for this and the aim is to make Saudi a powerhouse of world football by the 2030's.


The trouble is that football is a fickle thing. You can watch some of the world's (former) best players play in the saudi league at the moment but I'll bet most people (including many in Saudi) do not give a shit and would rather watch Crystal Palace v Brighton in the PL without any big names. That's why the Saudi's will never truly succeed. Football in that country will never be a great spectacle compared to the PL (or even the championship) because it's too feckin hot to play the type of football that actually entertains.


The price of everything and the value of nothing

The problem for them is that you can't buy history and prestige. You can buy attention and that's what they're doing. It will get people to look up and notice what they're doing, but it won't be long until they go to doing what they were about to do. It's like a naked fat guy standing in front of a strip club. Yeah, people who will stop, look at him and notice him, but once they've seen him, they'll go right past him to where they actually want to go and that is inside, where they can look at naked ladies. If they come back the next day, they'll still look at the guy, but they'll still go past him. After a week, they won't even realise he's there anymore.

Same goes for the Saudi league. Yeah, they have big names there and people have noticed and maybe some will even have watched some of the matches, but at the end of the day, they'll still very much prefer their own teams, leagues and European competition. At the end of the day, football in Europe has a history of more than 100 years and the Champions League is probably the most prestigious club trophy you can win in football (other than maybe the Copa Libertadores or whatever they have in South America). You can try and create something similar in your region, but that takes time and the Saudis don't want to wait. For me, the biggest danger is them getting a foot in the door in Europe with their clubs. It could start small with maybe having a CL final there and then maybe they'll start lobbying to get one of their clubs to take part in the competition. It might not happen tomorrow or the day after, but in my view, that has to be their ultimate goal (other than buying as many clubs in Europe as they can), if they want to become "someone" in the football world.