The New Club World Cup is close to premiere. 32 clubs representing 20 countries and all continents associated with FIFA will face in the United States for the honor of being world champion and a huge economic prize.
However, having extended the tournament to 32 teams instead of the usual 7 that played in recent decades It does not seem to have reached.
Powerful clubs in history and today as Barcelona, ​​Liverpool, Arsenal, América or Milan They were left without qualifying, and would have represented an important presence for the tournament with respect to different factors such as sports interest, marketing, ticket sales or television audience.
In addition, some countries of a lot of football tradition also did not have any representative, even though they have sought to boost that with a limit of two clubs per country (except that the continental champions that said country had more).
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That's why, FIFA already thinks about a change to revolutionize the Club World Cup facing its next edition in 2029.
The change that FIFA thinks to revolutionize the Club World Cup
As well as the World Cup of Male Selections will have 48 teams From 2026 and the same will happen with its female version in 2031, the Club World Cup could have them in 2029, wherever it is played (Australia, Portugal, Morocco and Spain have been reported with interest in being headquarters), according to the The Guardian report.
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“We are Very open to consider different formats and discuss them with clubs and confederations. I firmly believe in the future of this competition “, declared The Ahletic Mattias Grafstromthe secretary general of FIFA.
Grafstrom, Swedish who assumed his position last year, also recognized the possibility of integrate a kind of repechage In the future, as was the Play-in game that America and theFC played due to the decline of the lion for regulatory issues.
“The only thing we have set is the ranking system for the next edition and? It will be played in 2029“Said Grafstrom, confirming that the same system will be used that classified the clubs to this tournament, that is, being continental champion in the previous four years or adding points in each edition and entering by ranking.
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To add great clubs It would not be enough to expand the quota to 48 teams (adding more than each continent, as was done with the World Cup), but It would also be necessary to raise the possible places of each country (Beyond the exception to the champions), something that is claimed by the Premier League teams, for example, a league of which there will always be important clubs that will not be able to classify.
With three places per country instead of two, for example, Liverpool, RB Leipzig and Barcelona would have displaced Benfica, Juventus and RB Salzburgwho added less points than them in the four editions counted from the Champions League. It would also be something important for Teams from Brazil and Argentinausual protagonists in the Libertadores, and those of Mexico and the United Statesthose that usually go further in the Concachampions.
A format of 48 clubs, in case the one that will have the 2026 World Cup, would increase the number of tournament matches from 63 to 104and possibly I would give more opportunities to non -European teams to play more than the three group stage matches.
