The FIFA Club World Cup is a good idea... in theory... or is it?
The United States is getting a taste of the real World Cup a year early, but is the expansion of a tournament, largely seen as a "friendly" competition, a worthwhile venture?
At the dawn of the century, the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) decided they needed a new tournament. One that would pit the club champions of each continent against each other. The most popular sporting event in the world was between national teams from all over, why not clubs?
In 2000, the tournament got off to a resounding start. Brazilian club Corinthians beat nation opponents Vasco de Gama on penalties to claim the inaugural title. European Champions Real Madrid finished fourth overall, and the tournament had the potential to be a success.
FIFA followed that first year up by… cancelling the tournament for the next four years due to financial problems. The viability of the Club World Cup was brutally questioned. Did it have any place in football?
Finally, though, the competition resumed in 2005 — to a collective “meh”. Shrug. Who cares?
Even though it has been played in every year since then, fans of the sport see it as nothing more than a mere friendly competition. After all, only 8 clubs usually participate.
The winners of the Champions League for Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America, as well as a club from the host nation, face off. Usually, the European champions win — and by usually, I mean that Brazilian clubs (4 times in total) are the only non-Europeans to have ever won it.
But now, FIFA want to revitalize a forgotten tournament. And why not? The idea is good. Bringing clubs and fans together, from all over, to play the beautiful game. When and where else would teams like Barcelona and Santos play for a trophy?
This summer, the tournament is expanding to 32 clubs. And it’s coming to the US. It will be a true Club World Cup. And, FIFA hopes, it will catch on this time.
As a fan of the sport, and an American, I should be excited. But I can’t decide if this is a good idea or not. Don’t get me wrong. I’m going to a game. River Plate vs Monterrey at the Rose Bowl. Two passionate fanbases. One legendary stadium. I can’t miss it. Those teams might never play a game, that I can watch live, again.
That’s why I had to make a pros and cons list. Because one side of me loves this. And the other side sees the flaws.
Pro #1 - There are games between teams you couldn’t witness before and probably won’t ever witness again
I’ve already alluded to this, but there are some genuinely cool matchups just in the group stages of this tournament. Bayern Munich, the perennially dominant Bundesliga champions who have 6 UCL and 2 CWC titles, will be facing New Zealand’s Auckland City FC. For the first time ever. In Cincinnati, Ohio of all places.
That feels like something you’d cook up when playing the FIFA video game gets boring. Auckland isn’t new to the competition, however, participating in 12 previous editions. But the club was only formed in 2004. Bayern was formed way back in 1900.
And sure, there are plenty of games between European giants and smaller clubs from around the world. And yes, those games are historical for those clubs. And, if they pull off an upset, they’ll write their names into history.
But I’m even more interested in the competitive matches. Al Ahly, who have had great success in the CWC in the past making many semi-finals and once finishing third, will play Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami to kick off the competition. That could be a classic. And what do those teams have to lose? Why not go for it?
In general, seeing three MLS clubs compete on home soil against an array of teams is fun for a fan of the league like me. Seattle playing host to PSG and Atletico Madrid, for a match with actual implications, should excite any US soccer fan. That might never happen again.
Here’s a list of other games that give this version of the Club World Cup actual value in my eyes: Boca Juniors vs Benfica. Pachuca vs Red Bull Salzburg. Palmeiras vs Al Ahly. River Plate vs Monterrey. Ulsan HD vs Mamelodi Sundowns. Flamengo vs Espérance Sportive de Tunis.
This isn’t an ad. But this is as good of a reason as any to watch.
Con #1 - Players are too damn tired
Out of all the complaints levied against the competition, this one has by far the strongest leg to stand on.
It’s clear that footballers play too many games. Look at Pedri back in 2020/21. He played 73 games for club and country. It killed him. He spent the next few seasons on and off the injury list. Rodri suffered a similar fate by tearing his ACL earlier this year, after season after season playing 60+ games.
At least for the European clubs, coming off a long and grueling season, what is the point of this tournament? Seriously, if you are Paris Saint-Germain why do you care? You won the UCL for the first time in club history, delivered happiness for your entire fanbase, and yet your season isn’t over. That’s bullshit.
Non-European leagues will have to deal with a similar fatigue as well. Either their seasons just finished, or this competition is disrupting the middle of it.
There is no offseason anymore. Players went to the Euros and Copa America and Olympics last summer, had a couple of weeks vacation, and then it was preseason training and world tours. The summer before the actual World Cup would’ve been a good chance for proper rest. A couple months of taking it easy (or at least easier). Except now players are going to be stuck in an endless cycle of no rest.
Euros —> Club World Cup —> World Cup. When does it end?
Pro #2 - Having top level clubs in the US play actual competitive games will help build fan culture
All of that being said… the famous teams matter. They only ever make the trip to North America for preseason matches, where the stars often don’t play. It’s just a bunch of kids out there sometimes. And if the stars do play, they certainly aren’t going 100%.
If the big stars give it a go, and the big teams try to win this, US soccer fans (casual or die-hard) will get to see European teams play for something in their backyard. They’ll get to see Brazilian and Argentine and Asian and African teams as well. But we all know that there are plenty of Man City, PSG, Bayern, Real Madrid and Juventus fans in the country and not many Mamelodi Sundowns or Urawa Red Diamonds ultras hanging about.
If you love the sport, and you want to convince your friends to get into it, chances are they’ll be enticed by a potential Man City vs Real Madrid match in the late stages of the Club World Cup. Or the Atletico Madrid vs PSG group stage game at the Rose Bowl.
I love Major League Soccer. It deserves more fans. But I’m not naive. We have a better chance of building a true soccer culture in this country through events like the Club World Cup this year and the actual, more meaningful, World Cup next year.
Those European powerhouses might not care. But imagine if they do.
Con #2 - What about the money?
Also, MLS is on my last damn nerves anyway. The league should be on the last damn nerves of all its fans.
FIFA has pumped so much prize money into this competition so that every team cares and has something to play for. The winners will get $125 million, and there is a total of a $1 billion pool that each club will at least see a little bit of.
And MLS isn’t paying their players fairly. This has to do with the current CBA between the league and the player’s association. Yahoo Sports’ Jack Baer described the situation perfectly in a recent article, when talking about the Seattle Sounders’ players’ protest of the situation.
Essentially, Seattle will get nearly ten million dollars for participating. That could rise based on their results in the tournament. But as Baer puts it, “the players' cut of all that money, no matter what happens, is capped at $1 million. Not each. To split.”
And as we are about to start the tournament, there has been no agreement between the league, the participating clubs and the players. The $1 million cap was put in place before this new Club World Cup, and its amazing prize money, had been known to the players’ association. They got screwed over.
If the Sounders, or Inter Miami or LAFC, bring 30 players and split the money evenly, then each player will get… around $33,000. Now, that isn’t money to scoff at. However, it is not a fair share of the money. 10% for the players is crap. They could win the whole damn thing and still only see $33,000 for their efforts.
For once, FIFA has stepped up to the plate and given a real incentive for teams and players. The MLS is making sure the players from the host nation lack that incentive.
Pro #3 - This is a test run for next summer
The Copa America final last summer put something on display for the entire world to see: the United States of America was not ready to host a major international soccer tournament.
There were major security failures for the match between Argentina and Colombia. Fans tried to get in through the air ducts, people overpowered police to get in and ultimately a lot of people made it through and watched the match without a ticket. It was horrible.
If this country wants to have a good World Cup, in the edition with the most teams and games ever of the most popular sporting event, they have to first get it right this year.
That’s a good thing. That means this Club World Cup should (emphasis on should) be run amazingly. The fan experience should be top tier. The US Soccer Federation, the stadiums and the cities should all be well prepared.
Con #3 - The US government sucks
I’d like to visit the rock you’ve been living under for the past week if you have no clue what is going on in this country. The Trump administration’s excessive need to deport anybody who resembles a member of the latin community has come to a head in Los Angeles. ICE was going insane with raids. The people have had enough. They are standing up for democracy.
Don’t get it twisted. They aren’t strategically finding criminals. They are arresting any supposed immigrant without cause or a warrant. In Home Depot parking lots (where, notoriously, criminals do their business).
There are now reports that ICE agents will be at the opening match of the Club World cup on Saturday in Miami. Heightened security for matches of this stature isn’t out of the ordinary, but there is no doubt that they will be a threat to the large latin community in South Beach. To people who just want to watch Lionel Messi play the beautiful game.
I will simply ask a question. Is soccer/football, a sport enjoyed by a vast amount of cultures and deemed the “world’s game”, a space for just white people to feel safe? Or should these games be an open and safe space for anybody and everybody? There are clubs coming from South America and Mexico to compete in this competition. And our government is making it a threatening environment for their fans.
Pro #4 - Fun, good fans, good atmosphere
I seem to contradict myself every paragraph with these things, but I do believe that the fans will be the best part of the tournament. Let’s hope they are safe and feel comfortable to attend because we are getting the best of the best ultras.
River Plate. Boca Juniors (imagine they face off at some point). PSG. Botafogo. Fluminese. Monterrey. Seattle Sounders. Urawa Red Diamonds (seriously, watch this video, if their fans come it will be awesome). Any match with Messi will have excited fans.
Maybe this is more hope than anything, but if the supporters groups come then this tournament will be genuinely fun. It’s hard to travel to all of these different places and witness their atmospheres. So why not bring them all here?
If there is no other good reason to see a game, then let this be the guiding force.
Con #4 - Will FIFA sell enough tickets?
There are reports, however, that FIFA is struggling to sell tickets and has been slashing prices constantly. They need to sell around 40,000 more tickets for the opening match if they wish for it to be full. I mean, just look at the state of Ticketmaster for this game:
That is a LOT of empty seats. And this match will feature Messi, the greatest player to ever grace the game. Sure, some of the issue right now is re-sellers who don’t actually want to see a football match and would rather scalp the tickets. But, honestly, the fan support feels low. That could change, and we’ll have to wait and see what the actual matches are like, but it doesn’t look good now.
I have hope, though, because of how the LAFC vs Club América play-in match went earlier this month. Just watch the highlights and see how many América fans are there. It’s a sea of yellow.
Only problem is that LAFC won the match. While it gives me hope that other fans will step up to the plate, I truly am worried.
This tournament is confusing. I want to love it. I want to hate it. I know of all the issues and yet I have hope for it. I’ll enjoy watching my match, at the very least. I hope to get a glimpse of what an actual River Plate match is like, and it’ll be my first time at the Rose Bowl. But if that’s all this tournament will be good for, then I’m worried for its success.