PARIS (AP) – The French Federation of Professional Football Players launched a scathing attack on the Club World Cup on Sunday.
UNFP also accused President Gianni Infantino of living “in an ivory tower” by ignoring the impact that busy calendars have on players around the world.
“Of course, except for Gianni Infantino and his flattery, the discrepancies in situations will not be lost to anyone. From the height of his ivory towers he parades around the world, President FIFA has not seen an international calendar plagued the settlements of the game’s major players,” UNFP said early Sunday morning. “His (Infantino’s) Club World Cup proves, in absurdly, that it is urgent to stop this massacre game. He will escape the player’s physical and mental health for a few more dollars.”
According to a UNFP statement, the Club World Cup has come to the end of an already exhausting season, which says “a collective bargaining agreement (this) provides a three-week incompressible period of rest for footballers between two seasons, almost everywhere.”
FIFA was requested by the Associated Press for comment.
A few days before the start of the one-month Club World Cup, which ends on July 13th, the football chief faced a new call to protect players to raise the fear of injury and burnout.
The newly expanded tournament, involving 32 of the world’s best teams, has faced pushbacks since FIFA announced it would already be added to the saturation calendar. The tournament takes place every four years and is sandwiched between the Men’s World Cup, the European Championship and the Copa America.
It opposed the background of European legal agendas, and opposed threats and repeated concerns to the players’ mental and physical welfare due to too many games.
“UNFPs like Fifpro Europe and Fifpro Europe have been protesting for years to dramatically increase their workloads,” UNFP added. “But I also oppose the detrimental impact of the calendar on domestic football, which FIFA is building today.”
Last September, Manchester City midfielder Rodri suffered a knee injury shortly after he said the player was approaching an excessive workload.
There is no PSG rest
Champions League winner Paris Saint-Germain is one of the biggest aspects involved in the Club World Cup.
After winning the Champions League on May 31, major PSG players such as Oousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué played in France, and quickly headed to the United States for the Club World Cup.
French clubs have already resumed training for their first league season, starting in mid-August, while other clubs will start next week. PSG was unable to push back the start of the League One season.
“I don’t know how or why Parisians should not benefit from the three-week full rest they are entitled,” UNFP said, adding that the sacrifice of additional games for PSG players could have an impact on the national team in early September.
“Ahead of the two qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup, we have to worry about Didier Deschamps,” UNFP said. “Infantino, what do you say?”
FIFA hopes the event will become club soccer, and the World Cup has established itself as one of the biggest and wealthiest tournaments in the sport, with the World Cup present in international football.
An older version of the annual Club World Cup was recently dominated by European teams. Only the Brazilian Team Corinthians defeated the European victory in 17 years.
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