Is Fifa Club World Cup a risk to player welfare and the integrity of football?
Image: Ina Fassbender/AFP
The expanded 32-team Fifa Club World Cup kicks off in the US next week with fears that the sport's governing body could be killing the goose that laid the golden egg, with profits placed above player welfare.
Most of the criticism of the tournament has focused on the timing, in the off-season window when players usually recharge after gruelling domestic and continental campaigns. It was not such a major factor in its previous guise, when it featured a handful of teams who only played a few matches.
The current tournament will now run for almost a month, with the eight groups of four teams playing 63 matches in total. The top two in each group will qualify for the knockout rounds.
The $1bn prize money is an obvious drawcard for the clubs involved, including South African champions Mamelodi Sundowns. But the clubs are likely to pay a heavy toll next season in terms of players' mental and physical fatigue, with depression, anxiety and burnout increasing the risk of injury.
Yet, player welfare seems increasingly relegated to the bottom of a priority list that is dominated by the profit motive, and outright greed of Fifa. The warning cries from the likes of players' union FIFPRO, as well as those of players like Manchester City midfielder Rodri, seem to have been swept under the carpet.
The situation is only made worse by a bloated calendar for European teams, especially with the addition of the Uefa Nations League to the international calendar and the Uefa Conference League to the ever-expanding intercontinental club tournaments.
Manchester City midfielder Rodri has been one of the critics of the increasing player workload. Photo: EPA
Image: EPA
The number of English Premiership clubs decimated by injuries seems to be increasing, with Manchester City, Tottenham and title challengers Arsenal hard hit at times this season. Even current champions Liverpool went through an injury nightmare a few seasons ago that hobbled their title challenge.
Yet, the current schedule is particularly punishing for players from clubs that went far in the Uefa Champions League and then took part in the Nations League finals during the recent international break, before jetting off to the US. Champions League winners PSG's French and Portuguese internationals spring most readily to mind.
The European powerhouse is likely to go deep into the Club World Cup, based on previous results, so those players aren't likely to have much of a break before they have to gear up for next season.
The temptation must be strong for the so-called bigger clubs to field second-string teams to protect their prized assets. But Fifa is not likely to take too kindly to that. They will surely demand their pound of flesh.
Fifa, for their part, will point out that the tournament will now take place every four years, as opposed to every year. That will be cold comfort for players who already feel stretched thin by their increasingly demanding schedules.
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