German club bosses: Winning Club World Cup would be 'historic'
Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund bosses believe that winning the title at the revamped Club World Cup would be a historic achievement for the European clubs.
"In sporting terms, it's a real challenge - and you can win the first global tournament across all continents. That would be historic," Bayern CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen told the Münchner Merkur/tz media group in an interview to be published on Wednesday.
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Dortmund chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke added: "Every football enthusiast remembers that Uruguay won the first World Cup in 1930. It will be the same in the future with the first winner of the Club World Cup."
The revamped Club World Cup will have 32 teams and will take place in 11 United States cities June 14-July 13. Bayern and Dortmund are the only two German clubs participating.
Previously, it was a seven-team tournament usually played in December.
Watzke said that the European clubs are looking forward to the tournament, while Dreesen stressed that it's highly attractive economically.
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Football governing body FIFA is set to give more than $1 billion in prize money for the clubs, while the winner could receive a total of $125 million.
"The sum is of course high, but you have to divide it into four parts," Watzke explained
"After all, the Champions League takes place every year - and the Club World Cup only every four years. In addition, more competitive matches mean higher performance bonuses for players, not to mention the extremely high travel costs," he added.
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