Liverpool stars make feelings clear on Alexander-Arnold after Madrid unveiling
Trent Alexander-Arnold was officially unveiled as Real Madrid's newest player on Thursday, though the right-back raised eyebrows back at his former club Liverpool
Trent Alexander-Arnold's former Liverpool team-mates appear to approve of his move to Real Madrid. The England international has decided to head to the Bernabeu on a free transfer from the Reds.
Alexander-Arnold's decision drew intense criticism from Liverpool fans and he was booed in his final few games for the club. Madrid have paid a £10million fee in order to have Alexander-Arnold released from his contract early.
That means he will be able to feature in their Club World Cup campaign. The right-back was officially unveiled by the La Liga giants on Thursday, taking to the podium to speak in fluent Spanish.
His ability to speak the language of his new country raised eyebrows among Reds fans. Alexander-Arnold was joined at the announcement by members of his family, as well as Madrid's top brass.
They are not the only ones supporting his decision to leave his boyhood team for pastures new though. Alexander-Arnold celebrated his unveiling at Madrid by posting an image on Instagram of himself and his family while wearing his new club's kit.
The caption on the post read: "Family is everything." Alexander-Arnold received overwhelming support from his former team-mates at Anfield following the post.
It received more than 1.8 million likes on Instagram, including from current Liverpool stars including Federico Chiesa, Andy Robertson, Wataru Endo, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch, Luis Diaz and Tyler Morton.
Former Reds stars Roberto Firmino, Gini Wijnaldum, Jordan Henderson and Adam Lallana also liked the post by Alexander-Arnold. He was also welcomed by his new team-mates, with Jude Bellingham leaving a white love heart emoji as his comment on the post.
Alexander-Arnold is looking forward to starting the next chapter of his career. He said at his announcement: 'It wasn't a question of whether to go or not. I always knew that if I ever left Liverpool, it would be to join Real Madrid.
"There came a time when I had to decide whether to leave or stay, and it wasn't easy. I'd been there for so long that it wasn't easy. There comes a time when you have to make a decision, and for me, this was the right one.
'I was there for so long. The club gave me the opportunity to achieve all my dreams. I'm grateful to them and will always be with them. Having achieved everything I've accomplished at my age, I'm ready to move on.
"This opportunity came along and I took it. I think it's a good decision. I've been lucky to play for the biggest team in England and now I'm at the biggest in Spain. Both have won many trophies and dominated their leagues. It's an honour to represent both of them.
"At both clubs, you're expected to win and perform well; there are many similarities. At Liverpool, you were expected to win trophies and it's the same here. That's what's demanded of you. The fans are used to it and we have to deliver."
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BBC News
42 minutes ago
- BBC News
Fifa, the Club World Cup and Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia's money appears to be underpinning the revamped Club World why has the country helped to bankroll an event that has struggled to generate interest, drawing criticism for the impact it could have on players, domestic leagues, and the environment?For those wanting to understand the forces at play over the next month of competition in the US, Miami's Hard Rock Stadium on Wednesday would be an ideal place to after all, is where Real Madrid will kick off their Club World Cup campaign, with new signing Trent Alexander-Arnold set to make his fact the Spanish giants were willing to pay Liverpool a reported £8m to secure the defender's early release so he could play in the tournament is testament to the staggering riches on offer. With a prize pot of $1bn (£750m), top European teams are in line to earn up to £97m if they win, leading to concerns such money could distort domestic leagues and skew competitive balance. Real's Saudi opponents - Al-Hilal - highlight another intriguing aspect of the Riyadh club are owned by the kingdom's Public Investment Fund (PIF).But the vast sovereign wealth fund's involvement in this competition does not stop December, sports streaming platform DAZN agreed to pay Fifa - football's world governing body - $1bn for the tournament's global broadcast was not the only surprise, because it also promised to make the live action available for free. This despite Fifa having previously struggled to find broadcast partners, and after DAZN had posted several billion dollars worth of losses over recent years. Then, a few weeks later, a subsidiary of PIF announced it had acquired a minority stake in DAZN for what it has since confirmed was $1bn - explaining at the time it was "an exciting opportunity to build on DAZN's significant successes in recent years by bringing more sports to fans and audiences around the world".Saudi ties with the Club World Cup strengthened further last week, when PIF became an official partner of an event Fifa president Gianni Infantino claims will "make football truly global".In a statement at the time, PIF claimed the sponsorship deal showed it was "at the forefront of growing football", noting the sport "plays a crucial role in the ongoing transformation" of the is there more to it than that? After all, Fifa had initially struggled to attract sponsors, and ticket sales for some games have been sluggish, with the event perhaps hampered by a complicated qualification system that means recently crowned domestic champions including Liverpool and Barcelona are not the event from seven teams to 32 has also sparked a legal complaint from both the international players' union and the body representing European leagues, who - despite Fifa denials - claim their concerns over a congested calendar and player workload have been ignored. 'Deeply flawed' Back in December, just a few days after Fifa announced its "landmark agreement" with DAZN, the governing body confirmed Saudi Arabia as the host of the 2034 World it is not just the timeline that has inevitably led to speculation over a possible connection between Saudi's investment in the expanded Club World Cup and that hugely controversial years of scrutiny over its human rights and environmental record, the Saudi bid for the World Cup was unopposed. Australia - the only other potential candidate - decided not to enter the running, hinting it was futile to do so after being given less than a month by Fifa to mount a stood by a fast-tracked process critics argued lacked transparency, and which it was felt effectively paved the way for the Saudis thanks to a decision that only bids from Asia and Oceania would be considered - even though the World Cup had been staged in the Middle East - in Qatar - as recently as sense of inevitability surrounding Saudi's bid was only reinforced after Fifa's evaluation report awarded it a record high score. Ratification was then confirmed by acclamation - in the form of applause - rather than a traditional vote, with only Norway's football federation abstaining, and criticising the bidding has defended Saudi's hosting of football's 2034 showpiece, insisting it can be a catalyst for social improvements, and Fifa insists it was an open and transparent process. But others remain McGeehan, of football campaign group Fair Square, told BBC Sport the World Cup process effectively acted "to ensure that Saudi Arabia was selected as host"."During this deeply flawed bidding process… Fifa sealed a commercially inexplicable broadcasting deal [for the Club World Cup] said to be worth $1bn with an entity that is now part-owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund."Fifa does not like the fact that many people look at these facts and conclude that there must be a linkage between them, but had it run a fair and transparent bidding process in the first place it wouldn't be under this scrutiny."Such sentiments are echoed by Infantino's predecessor Sepp Blatter, who claims the Club World Cup will "over-charge the international calendar".Replying to BBC Sport's questions via his lawyer, Blatter - who remains banned from football until 2028 for breaches of its ethics code - said: "It is obvious that without Saudi's investment, the Club World Cup could not be organised in the US... it's only through financial help of $1bn from Saudi Arabia that the [DAZN] coverage of this competition was possible."There is no more mystery... Saudi Arabia has taken control of international football."In a statement, a Fifa spokesperson rejected the suggestion that investment into the Club World Cup was from one country, saying it now had nine tournament sponsors and that "commercial momentum is strong".They insisted that Fifa has "a duty to develop the game globally and this new competition is in the best interests of football", with all profits redistributed to the clubs through prize money and a $250m 'solidarity' added that the Club World Cup "is not responsible for calendar congestion", noting that it takes place once every four years with a maximum of seven matches for the two finalists."We believe that this new Club World Cup will mark a turning point for club football worldwide…[it] is an event that football needed." 'The most streamed sports event ever' Speaking to BBC Sport from Miami before the Club World Cup's opening match, DAZN's emerging markets chief executive Pete Oliver defended the investment in what he calls "a fantastic competition", insisting it made commercial sense."We've been looking for a big property to take DAZN to the next step," he said. "This is an opportunity to establish ourselves as a global platform for football."Oliver said it was a "very logical deal" for DAZN, insisting the tournament would "take off" and was generating huge interest in regions such as South America."We think this will be the most streamed sports event ever. It will help us build a huge customer database," he added, pointing out DAZN had recouped some of its outlay by regionally sub-licensing rights to some about PIF's subsequent investment in the company, Oliver said: "People always speculate but I can tell you we're not being used as a pawn or anything like that."There was a lot that happened, but these things are not necessarily connected in any way. The investment we had from PIF was around a general investment, but also specifically to establish a partnership for the Middle East and North Africa region."We're an independent company... we're making our own decisions."PIF declined to comment, but sports business expert Callum McCarthy says their investment in DAZN "is expected to result in a Saudi-based sports broadcaster that will rival Qatar's beIN Sports across the Middle East."Saudi Arabia has wanted to own a sports broadcaster for well over a decade and has never really known how to pull it off," he says. "Fifa needed a global broadcaster for this tournament that could fund this thing, and DAZN now has a direct relationship with Fifa. All three parties have got what they wanted out of the equation." 'Marriage of convenience' Speaking on condition of anonymity, one senior FA source told BBC Sport that Saudi's support for the Club World Cup was "a marriage of convenience". The country - they believe - was always likely to stage the 2034 World Cup regardless of the backing of the Club World Cup, thanks to its unprecedented investment in sport, along with the money Fifa believed it could make by returning to the Middle East after Qatar felt Saudi's financial backing of the Club World Cup should be viewed as a "bailout" for Fifa, rather than an agreed plan. Fifa, the source said, would have initially been hoping to attract more interest from broadcasters and sponsors, but may have sought help from the Saudis."Sport in the kingdom is still largely known for boxing and horse racing," they said."With Al-Hilal involved in the Club World Cup, this helps establish the country as a footballing nation ahead of the World Cup in 2034, in a way that Qatar failed to do for 2022."Involvement in the Club World Cup may help tempt some players to join the Saudi Pro League. They'll be hoping it brings football to a wider public in their own country, and helps to tackle low attendances at some games."It is notable that Saudi club Al-Ahli has already booked a place in the 2029 Club World Cup. 'Opportunity for growth' Sources close to the Saudi government told BBC Sport the country's investment is purely based on an opportunity for growth in a new market it can also benefit from, as it develops its own plans to use football to boost the economy, boost tourism and help says it fully concurs with Infantino's recent claim that if the US and Saudi Arabia could develop their football industries, and there was less reliance on European football, the sport's annual GDP could double to more than half a trillion dollars in economic this helps explain why Fifa is reportedly already considering a 48-team Club World Cup in 2029 - in line with the expanded men's and women's World Cups."I think that concept could work, as long as the quality of the teams is high," says DAZN's Oliver."That could be very exciting."That is not how player unions will see such a prospect, as they insist their members are already at breaking point. Environmental campaign groups are also vehemently opposed to a competition that has gone from seven matches in a single city to 63 matches across 11 nothing else, this Club World Cup could reveal just how much more expansion the game is capable of, and willing to accept.
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
DAZN is airing every FIFA Club World Cup game live and free
Some of the biggest teams from the Premier League, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A are among those in the USA for the new-and-improved FIFA Club World Cup, including Man City, Chelsea, Real Madrid and PSG. The Premier League may be over for the summer, but there's something new on the way to help plug the football gap until next season. On Saturday (June 14), the revamped FIFA Club World Cup will kick off in the USA, pitting the world's best club sides against one another in a month-long tournament. It marks the first Club World Cup in its new and expanded format, with the competition now featuring 32 of the world's best clubs from the six continental confederations. There are teams from the Premier League, La Liga, Ligue 1, Serie A, and MLS, to name a few. There will be a total of 63 fixtures from June 14 through to the final on July 13. Flying the flag for the Brits are Manchester City and Chelsea, alongside European titans like Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Milan and Bayern Munich. But what sets the competition apart from the UEFA Champions League is that these teams will also compete against many more from around the globe, with the likes of Inter Miami, Al-Hilal, Boca Juniors and Auckland City all taking part. As well as big teams, there's also some big names set to feature, including Lional Messi, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappé. Each of the competition's 32 teams have been split into eight groups of four, with the top two from each group progressing into the knock-out stages. The Club World Cup is being hosted by 12 US stadiums including New Jersey's MetLife Stadium and Los Angeles' iconic Rose Bowl Stadium. This means there will be a time difference for fans tuning in from the UK, with the first game scheduled to kick off at 1am BST on Sunday, January 15, between Egyptian side Al Ahly and Inter Miami. However, fans hoping to catch all the action will be able to stream every single fixture for free on DAZN, and we've got all the information needed to do so below. How to stream every Club World Cup game for free DAZN is the exclusive global broadcaster of the FIFA Club World Cup, with fans able to stream all 63 fixtures live if they set up a free DAZN account. There's also the option to upgrade to DAZN's Premium plan, with 30-day rolling or 12-month options available from £9.99 thanks to a new limited-time offer. Premium subscribers can stream all the Club World Cup action with HDR picture quality and Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound, plus highlights, replays, fewer adverts and full access to the rest of the DAZN platform. Both the free and paid-for subscriptions also provide access to a plethora of documentaries, features and classic clips from tournaments gone by, as well as closer looks at the top players and host cities. Fans can also set their account to follow certain teams and players from the latest competition so they don't miss any of the action, and keep up to date with the current standings with up-to-date group tables. DAZN has confirmed its punditry team will include Brazilian legend Ronaldo, John Obi Mikel, Sami Khedira and many more, with Conor McNamara, Andros Townsend, Brad Friedel, Rob Green among the commentators. DAZN can be accessed at home or on the go with the DAZN App on smart TVs, smartphones, tablets, games consoles, streaming devices and any device with a web browser. The only way to catch every Club World Cup fixture is by registering with DAZN. For those who don't want to sign up for another subscription, DAZN has also sublicensed select fixtures to Channel 5, meaning 23 games will be broadcast on both DAZN and 5. This may be a good option for less tech-savvy football fans who are not bothered about every game. When does the Club World Cup start? The Club World Cup is scheduled to kick off at 1am UK BST on Sunday, January 15, with Al Ahly and Inter Miami facing off at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium. For those following the Premier League teams, here are Chelsea and Man City's group stage fixtures: Chelsea Chelsea vs LAFC – June 16, 8pm KO Flamengo vs Chelsea – June 20, 7pm KO Espérance de Tunis vs Chelsea – June 25, 2am KO Manchester City Man City vs Wydad AC – June 18, 5pm KO Man City vs Al Ain – June 23, 2am KO Juventus vs Man City – June 26, 8pm KO The Club World Cup runs through to the final on July 13. Fans can register with DAZN here to watch every game live and for free.
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
FIFA Club World Cup prize money and exact amount all 32 clubs will earn
Chelsea, Manchester City and a number of other European big guns are ready for the controversial Club World Cup and despite criticism huge sums of money are on offer Many players are unhappy to be competing, at least one Premier League manager has said he will not be tuning in and tickets are six times cheaper than initially advertised because fans are so unenthused. But one thing that cannot be sniffed at in FIFA's controversial 32-team Club World Cup is the $1bn prize pot with the winners expected to pocket about £100m - roughly the same as the Champions League winners for fewer than half of the games. And without such riches being dangled in front of them it is fair to question whether Europe's big guns would have committed in the first place. 'The distribution model of the FIFA Club World Cup reflects the pinnacle of club football and represents the biggest-ever prize money for a football tournament comprising a seven-match group stage and playoff format with a potential payout of $125m foreseen for the winners,' Gianni Infantino said in typical understated fashion when announcing the distribution model. Here is what each team is set to earn over the coming four weeks, broken into a performance pillar of $475m (£350m) and a participation pillar of $525m (£386m). Performance pillar The format is the same as the real World Cup - well, until that is changed next summer - with an impressive $2m prize in every group stage game with the winner taking it all and a draw split evenly. Reaching the round of 16 will see clubs earn an additional $7.5m, quarter-finalists will get $13.125m, the four semi-finalists pocket another $21m with the beaten finalists getting $30m and the champions earning $40m alongside a trophy with Infantino's name scratched on. Group stage $2m (£1.47m) for a win $1m (£740,000) for draw per club Round of 16 $7.5m (£5.5m) Quarter-final $13.125m (£9.67m) Semi-final $21m (£15.46m) Finalist $30m (£22.1m) Winner $40m (£29.46m) Participation pillar But even if your team has a stinker and bows out after three group stage fixtures, simply turning up will prove worthwhile. All 32 clubs will get a base payment based on their rankings and federation with the UEFA sides on a sliding scale based upon what FIFA called 'sporting and commercial criteria.' Europe $12.81-38.19m (£9.43m-£28.12m) South America $15.21m (£11.2m) North, Central America & Caribbean $9.55m (£7.03m) Asia $9.55m (£7.03m) Africa $9.55m (£7.03m) Oceania $3.58m (£2.64m) Global football FIFA also say that the CWC will see 'an unprecedented solidarity investment programme' with 'a target of an additional $250m being provided to club football across the world ' - though exact details around how that is being distributed are unclear. Infantino said: 'This solidarity will undoubtedly provide a significant boost in our ongoing efforts in making football truly global.'
