Speaking at the workshop "New trends in the sports industry" held on July 2 in the city of Vitoria-Gasteiz ( Spain), La Liga President Javier Tebas publicly opposed the plan to organize the FIFA Club World Cup in an expanded format. He warned that FIFA's increase to 32 teams from this year is harmful and beyond the acceptable limits.
I will do everything I can to ensure that the next FIFA Club World Cup does not go as planned. Football currently has no place for this tournament," Mr. Tebas emphasized.
FIFA is holding a Club World Cup with 32 teams, competing for a month in the US from June 14 to July 13. The teams are divided into 8 groups competing in the same format as the World Cup.
The tournament promises to bring a prize of up to 1 billion USD, of which the champion team can receive 125 million USD. Mr. Tebas criticized the bonus for being too large, saying that this creates financial inequality between clubs.
He was especially upset that Real Madrid - the representative of La Liga who won a ticket to the tournament - will request to postpone the La Liga match schedule for the opening round of the 2025-2026 season, affecting television rights.
"They earned double the Alaves budget, then asked for more time to rest. We are losing direction," the La Liga president was frank.
La Liga president Tebas has called for the old format, which was limited to seven teams and ended in a week, to ensure it does not disrupt the domestic league schedule.
Not only Tebas, many famous figures in the football world also opposed FIFA's plan. Former coach Jurgen Klopp once called the new format "the worst idea", warning of the risk of players getting injured due to the overloaded schedule.
"We don't need another tournament to transfer money to the same club group and players. The current ecosystem of football is under threat and this tournament needs to be eliminated," Tebas affirmed.
