November 21 – The world players’ union Fifpro has repeated its warning that strike action cannot be ruled out if the expanded Club World Cup goes ahead amid ongoing concerns about the physical and mental impact on players as a result of an increasingly congested schedule.
The FIFA-run tournament in the United States next summer is being increased from seven teams to 32 teams but its new format has faced a fierce backlash.
“We have seen players’ strikes in different sports. We also have seen it in professional football and the players (have) proactively talked about it,” said Alexander Bielefeld, Fifpro director of policy and strategic relations.
“I think it’s quite a unique moment in terms of how connected players are on this issue. So I, personally, would also not rule anything out at this point,” he added.
Manchester City midfielder Rodri said in September that players were close to taking strike action because of the number of games they have to play. A few days later he sustained a season-ending injury when damaging knee ligaments.
The revamped Club World Cup is the subject of a formal complaint to the European Commission in Brussels by Fifpro and domestic leagues and unions about the way in which it was added to the global football calendar.
Despite the resistance, FIFA is pushing ahead with Gianni Infantino’s pet project, the FIFA president describing it last week as the “start of a new era for football”.
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