La Liga
FIFA Can Forget About It Real Madrid Won’t Participate In Club World Cup – Says Carlo Ancelotti
Real Madrid manager, Carlo Ancelotti, has announced that the club will not participate in the inaugural edition of FIFA’s upcoming Club World Cup tournament next summer due to the insufficient financial incentives offered.
The extended tournament is scheduled to be held in the United States in June and July 2025, including 32 teams from Africa, Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Oceania.
Real Madrid secured their place by claiming the Champions League title in both 2022 and 2024, with 29 out of the 32 spots already filled.
From The Left, Real Madrid Captain Nacho Carlo Ancelotti And Florentino Pérez Holding UCL Trophy 2023-24
In a recent interview with the Italian newspaper Il Giornale, Ancelotti disclosed that Real Madrid, along with other undisclosed clubs, did not intend to participate in the tournament.
“Players and clubs won’t participate in that tournament,” Ancelotti said. “One single Real Madrid game is worth €20 million, and FIFA wants to give us that amount for the entire competition. Negative.”
“Just like us, other clubs will refuse the invitation.”
The redesigned FIFA Club World Cup is the primary initiative for the world football body as they aim to emulate the success of club competitions like the Champions League and the Copa Libertadores.
In the most recent edition of the previous version of the Club World Cup held in Saudi Arabia in December 2023, only seven teams participated. Manchester City emerged as the champions by defeating the Brazilian team Fluminense in the final.
The new format first revealed in 2022, will feature 12 teams from UEFA, six from CONMEBOL, and four each from CONCACAF, CAF, and the AFC. Additionally, there will be one representative from Oceania’s OFC and the host nation.
Those teams qualify via either a “champions pathway” winning their continent’s club competition or a “ranking pathway” based on previous performance.
Criticism of the tournament has come from domestic leagues and players’ unions, who contend that players are being pushed to their limits.
However, FIFA president Gianni Infantino dismissed these assertions in a statement made last month.
“FIFA is organizing around 1% of the games of the top clubs in the world,” Infantino said. “When it comes to the national teams, it is very similar.”
“If you look at all the national team games around the world, we still have between 1% and 2% of the matches which are organized by FIFA. All other matches, 98% to 99%, are organized by other organizations.”
“With this 1% or 2% matches that FIFA organizes, FIFA is financing football all over the world… I hope that these figures will stop this futile debate.”
Madrid coach, Ancelotti, is on holiday in Vancouver, Canada, after a season which saw him lead the club to a Champions League and La Liga double.
In an interview with Il Giornale, he expressed optimism about persuading Toni Kroos to reconsider his retirement plans.
Carlo Ancelotti Giving Toni Kroos Instruction
The midfielder had announced his intention to retire after competing in this summer’s European Championship with Germany.
“Unfortunately Kroos has decided to stop, he is a German in his choices but he will continue to live in Madrid,” Ancelotti said. “I told him that if, in the autumn, he had to change his mind, a phone call and we’ll start again.”
