Latest news with #JoeNicholson-Imagn
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
'There's No Incentive': Sounders Protest MLS's $1M Club World Cup Cap
'There's No Incentive': Sounders Protest MLS's $1M Club World Cup Cap originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Seattle Sounders players have unleashed chaos, by sporting "Club World Cash Grab" T-shirts before their clash with Minnesota United yesterday. They're demanding a fair cut of the $9.55 million in Club World Cup prize money ( MLS's particularly stingy payout rules have ignited this fiery revolt. Advertisement The Sounders, Inter Miami, and LAFC will battle in the 32-team Club World Cup, hosted across the U.S. from June 14 to July 13, 2025. Each club secures $9.55 million, though MLS caps player payouts at $1 million per team ( This clashes with global norms. Related: Is FIFA's Club World Cup the Biggest Flop in Soccer History? The MLS collective bargaining agreement, locked in 2021, predates the tournament's expansion. The MLSPA says players pushed for equitable talks, but MLS clings to the outdated deal ( Sounders' Stefan Frei told The Seattle Times, 'There's no incentive' with a 90-10 split. Sounding the alarm, players are calling out the MLS and asking for a fair share of the prize-pot.© Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images Globally, players often pocket 50-70% of FIFA prize money. European clubs like PSG and Atlético Madrid, in Seattle's Group B, follow fairer models ( The Sounders' protest targets MLS's refusal to align with global norms, leaving players feeling cheated. Advertisement The MLSPA declared: 'Players elevate MLS globally' (MLSPA). FIFA's $1 billion prize pool, with $475 million performance-based, demands better splits. MLS's silence, citing ongoing negotiations, only stokes player fury. Seattle's 'Fair Share Now' T-shirts weren't just for show. Fans, including Emerald City Supporters, roared in support. MLS valuations soar—LAFC at $1.25 billion, Inter Miami at $1.2 billion ( yet player payouts stay miserly. This gap fuels the unrest. The Club World Cup, spanning seven MLS stadiums, is a global spotlight. Seattle faces Botafogo, Atlético Madrid, and PSG at Lumen Field, starting June 15 ( Unfair pay could sour this showcase. This clash could reshape MLS's future. With the 2026 FIFA World Cup looming, addressing player demands is critical. Will MLS evolve, or will the rebellion grow? Next: Is FIFA's Club World Cup the Biggest Flop in Soccer History? This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Sounders owner angrily confronts players over 'Club World Ca$h Grab' warm-up shirts, per reports
The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup kicks off in less than two weeks. The players and ownership of the Seattle Sounders are still fighting over their pieces of the pie. Amid a stand-off over the upcoming FIFA prize pool, the Sounders player took the field Sunday wearing warm-up shirts reading "Club World Ca$h Grab." The shirts received considerable attention on social media, and even more attention from the owner's box. According to Sounder at Heart and GiveMeSport, Sounders owner Adrian Hanauer angrily addressed the team in a profanity-laced postgame address. The exact comments aren't reported, but the players felt pushed enough that they discussed the issue with reporters in a joint address on Monday. Advertisement At the center of the fight is a tournament where players are only guaranteed to receive less than 1% of the prize money if they pull off a miracle run. Why are the Sounders players angry about the FIFA Club World Cup? While the idea of the expanded Club World Cup, in which 32 teams from across the world will compete in the United States this summer, is exciting, it comes with on major issue. Those teams' players already play a full, taxing schedule, and the Club World Cup adds between three and seven games to that docket. FIFA addressed this concern the way soccer governing bodies usually do: with enormous amounts of cash. The tournament has a prize pool of $1 billion, up from the $16 million offered in the previous tournament. Advertisement By simply showing up to their own Lumen Field in Seattle and playing three group play games, the Sounders organization is guaranteed to receive $9.55 million in participation money, For every game they draw, they get $1 million. For every win, $2 million. If they get out of group play? $7.5 million. If they win the tournament, which no one expects them to do, the Sounders will walk away with more than $120 million. And it is now at this point we will tell you the players' cut of all that money, no matter what happens, is capped at $1 million. Not each. To split. The Sounders players have some issues with their Club World Cup compensation. (Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images) (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect / Reuters) As Sounder at Heart broke down, the reason for this is a provision in the MLS CBS — signed in 2021, back when the Club World Cup was a minor, seven-club competition — that says players can receive a total of no more than $1 million per tournament. Advertisement So basically, the Sounders organization is on track for the deal of a lifetime, and the Sounders players want payment that reflects three games of elite soccer. And now they are publicly fighting over it less than two weeks before their tournament opener. Where does the MLS stand on the Club World Cup prize money fight? Soon after the Sounders took the field that infuriated their team owner, the MLS Players Association released a statement saying the union and its players stand united with the team and demand "a fair share" of the Club World Cup prize money. The union claimed it had "respectfully" invited the league to the table for months and had not received a reasonable proposal. It specifically called the $1 million clause out of date and ignorant of longstanding international standards for player payment in global competitions. Per GiveMeSport, one MLS source claimed the league office had regular discussions with the MLSPA over the past few weeks, with no official proposal from the union, argued that the $1 million clause is not out of date Advertisement It's also worth noting the MLSPA did agree to this CBA, but without the foresight that FIFA would springing a multi-million cash cow on the league's better clubs. The Sounders are one of three MLS squads who made the tournament, alongside LAFC and Inter Miami. Seattle was placed in Group B, alongside France's Paris Saint-Germain, Spain's Atlético Madrid and Brazil's Botafogo. Neither of the other American teams have aired out their grievances like the Sounders have, but it's hard to imagine either of those groups of players being happy with what the league is currently arguing.
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Seattle players call for 'fair share' of Club World Cup prize money
Jun 1, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Sounders FC forward Osaze De Rosario (95) wears a t-shirt to protest FIFA Club World Cup bonus sharing from MLS while participating in pregame warmups against the Minnesota United at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images REUTERS Jun 1, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Sounders FC forward Pedro De La Vega (10) wears a t-shirt to protest FIFA Club World Cup bonus sharing from MLS while during pregame warmups against the Minnesota United at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images REUTERS Jun 1, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Sounders FC players wear t-shirts to protest FIFA Club World Cup bonus sharing from MLS while during pregame warmups against the Minnesota United at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images REUTERS Jun 1, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Sounders FC goalkeeper Stefan Frei (24) wears a t-shirt to protest FIFA Club World Cup bonus sharing from MLS while participating in pregame warmups against the Minnesota United at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images REUTERS Jun 1, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Sounders FC forward Pedro De La Vega (10) wears a t-shirt to protest FIFA Club World Cup bonus sharing from MLS while during pregame warmups against the Minnesota United at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images REUTERS Seattle Sounders players called for a bigger slice of the prize money for competing at the Club World Cup this month by wearing T-shirts emblazoned with "Cash Grab" and "Fair Share Now" ahead of a Major League Soccer match on Sunday. Seattle are set to earn at least $9.55 million for competing at the June 14 to July 13 tournament in the U.S., where the total prize money runs to $1 billion, but under the MLS collective bargaining agreement (CBA) the players' share is capped at $1 million per club. Seattle are one of three MLS teams that will compete in the expanded 32-team Club World Cup. Teams from North America are guaranteed almost $10 million just for participating and can earn more depending on their results. MLS did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment after Seattle players warmed up in T-shirts with the phrases "Club World Cup Ca$h Grab" and "Fair Share Now" written on them ahead of their 2-3 home defeat by Minnesota United. The MLS Players Association said in a statement on Sunday that players had "privately and respectfully invited the league to discuss bonus terms, yet MLS has failed to bring forward a reasonable proposal". It added that the league was "clinging to an out-of-date CBA provision and ignoring longstanding international standards on what players typically receive from FIFA prize money in global competitions. "It is the players who make the game possible. It is the players who are lifting MLS up on the global stage. They expect to be treated fairly and with respect." Seattle are in Group B at the Club World Cup along with Brazil's Botafogo, UEFA Champions League winners Paris St Germain and LaLiga's Atletico Madrid. They face Botafogo in their opening game on June 15. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
