Football World Cup Rhythm | Several Football Associations Are Threatening To Leave FIFA
The dispute over the plans of the world football association Fifa to hold the men's World Cup every two years in future threatens to escalate. According to information from the German Press Agency, more than a dozen national associations from Europe are now considering ending their membership in the world association as the last option. Fifa boss Gianni Infantino had advertised on Tuesday with numerous European association bosses for the reform of the international game calendar for men from 2024 - and encountered vehement resistance.
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The President of the European Football Union (Uefa), Aleksander Čeferin, has already threatened a boycott from Europe. The Continental Association of South America also categorically rejects the reform. Most recently, the Nordic associations of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland and the Faroe Islands made their position against a World Cup every two years clear in a joint statement. "In the worst case and as a last option, it cannot be ruled out that the associations will withdraw from Fifa in protest and lack of demand for the new structure," said the Danish association boss Jesper Møller, who is also a member of the UEFA executive.
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A technical advisory group of Fifa around Wenger had proposed hosting the World Cup every two years, and the rhythm of continental tournaments such as the EM would be shortened. As a result, the changes should finally take effect after the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico with 48 nations for the first time. The tournaments of the confederations would then be held in 2027. In the previously planned EM year 2028, the next World Cup would then be due again.
DFB wants to prevent voting this year
"Overall, the European associations have made it very clear that they are all against the Fifa plans," said the German Football Association (DFB) at the request of the German Press Agency. "Fifa was presented with numerous arguments against the plans. Our impression was that the Fifa president looked very thoughtful and understood why it makes no sense to proceed in this way."
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Regardless of this, the Fifa Council wanted at its meeting today to determine the next steps for the reform sought by Infantino with a shortening of the World Cup rhythm from four to two years. The world association and its president had announced that they wanted to have clarity by the end of the year. There could be an extraordinary meeting of the Fifa member associations in December. It was still unclear whether there would only be further consultations shortly before Christmas or whether there would be a vote - the associations from Europe and South America alone would be far from a majority.
A vote on the plans this year should absolutely be prevented, said the DFB, whose interim president Peter Peters sits on the Fifa Council. In the dispute, the German association is relying on "a mutual amicable solution worked out by FIFA and Uefa" for the international game calendar. The DFB replied to the question of whether leaving the world association Fifa was an option: "The DFB is in close coordination with UEFA and the other associations." As a possible compromise, a worldwide Nations League , modeled on the European version, could be put back on the agenda as an additional event instead of a World Cup every two years. Uefa is the European Football Union.
Infantino argues with distractions from football
At the meeting with European representatives on Tuesday, Infantino justified the idea for a World Cup every two years by saying that other activities would divert the attention of young people from football. The Swiss appealed to find ways to further develop football together. In view of the great resistance to the plans, especially from Europe, Infantino warned to respect all opinions.
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Nevertheless, there is still massive criticism from Europe of Fifa's plans for a World Cup every two years, even outside the national associations. According to Javier Tebas, head of the Spanish La Liga, these would destroy the "entire ecosystem of football". "It is possible that leagues will be downsized, the value of TV rights for these leagues will decrease, the players will earn less there. This is how we make football a sport for the elite. That is a big mistake," said the 59-year-old, who is also at Uefa -Exko is sitting in an interview with Sport Bild (Wednesday).
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