FIFA recently announced some pretty ambitious plans for its Club World Cup! Beginning in 2029, the tourney will be expanded to 32 teams. European clubs did a lot of negotiating and behind-the-scenes lobbying to sway this decision. It could prove a watershed moment for FIFA in its efforts to improve competition in world club football. Mattias Grafström, FIFA’s General Secretary, stated that “everything was possible for 2029.” This shows an openness to a piecemeal approach to the future tournament structure.
The expanded FIFA Club World Cup will kick off in the United States, highlighting the growing importance of the American market in international football. Clubs from every corner of the earth will meet each other in a thrilling new competition. Winners could even win up to $125.8 million — all for playing only seven matches! This powerful financial incentive is designed to lure the best clubs and raise the tournament’s prestige on the international stage.
DAZN already pulled a coup last year when they acquired global television rights for the FIFA Club World Cup. So far they seem to have reached the outlines of a compromise – around $1 billion. This deal is seen as a watershed investment in broadcasting rights. On top of that, Channel 5 has secured the rights to broadcast 23 matches across the UK. The deal gives Dazn the rights to sublicense broadcasting rights to other regional networks, guaranteeing widespread access to the highly valued tournament.
Of note, three United States clubs are now entered into the worldwide tournament. This is a huge indicator of just how popular football is becoming in the country. Los Angeles earned their way in by beating Mexican power Club América in a play-in. This game had to be played after Club León was kicked out of the tournament for breaching multi-club ownership rules. This incident highlights the long-standing issues surrounding adherence to FIFA rules from the clubs involved in this tournament.
Grafström recognized the trepidation following the announcement of the tournament’s expansion. “For the future we are very open-minded to look at formats and so on that we will discuss with the clubs and with the confederations,” he stated. Other clubs are understandably upset at being excluded from the chance to take part. Grafström is confident that this competition will be key to FIFA’s revamped tournament model.
The expansion aligns with FIFA’s broader strategy that includes plans for a 48-team men’s World Cup and a 2031 Women’s World Cup. The organization’s focus is now on expanding opportunities for more clubs around the globe, while improving its own commercial sustainability. This is not the first time FIFA has struggled commercially for the Club World Cup. With this expansion, we are thrilled to be taking a major leap toward financial sustainability.
Paris Saint-Germain had a great campaign in UEFA Champions League netted even more revenue. This is more than double the prize awarded to the winners of the FIFA Club World Cup. This growing disparity makes it even more critical that FIFA raise the profile and competitiveness of its tournament.