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Gianni Infantino announced the reform plans at a press conference ahead of the World Cup final in Qatar
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Martin Meissner / AP
The World Leagues Forum (WLF), a worldwide association of more than 40 professional football leagues, has criticized Fifa for the announced reform of the Club World Cup.
"These decisions were made unilaterally, without consultation, let alone consent, by those who are directly affected: the leagues, their member clubs, the players and fans," said a WLF statement.
The changes could have "harmful consequences for football and the well-being of players".
The number of teams taking part in the Club World Cup is to be increased from seven to 32 from 2025, then every four years.
So far, the Club World Cup has been held every year.
This was announced by Gianni Infantino, President of the world football association Fifa, at a press conference in Doha, Qatar.
The venue and other details have “not yet been spoken about”, and a club World Cup for women is “planned”.
In March 2019, the Fifa Council decided to increase the number of men.
The originally planned first edition in the new format with 24 teams in China was canceled in 2021 due to the corona pandemic.
The upcoming Club World Cup will still be played in the old format from February 1 to 11, 2023 in Morocco.
The six winners of the main continental competitions take part in the Club World Cup, along with a team from the host country.
Champions League winners Real Madrid are the European representatives.
"Distortion of the competitive balance"
"With the calendar already overloaded with domestic club competitions and ever-growing international competitions, Fifa's decision risks oversupply of games, further injury to players and distortion of the competitive balance," wrote the World Leagues Forum, which also includes the German Football League (DFL) belongs.
The WFL said it would convene a board meeting in January to review Fifa's moves and assess the impact "the proposals could have on the fundamentals of football nationally," it said.
In addition to expanding the Club World Cup, Infantino announced in Doha that he intends to use the international window in March for mini-tournaments with teams from different continents every two years.
The new Fifa World Series aims to create more opportunities for duels between teams from different parts of the world.
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