Philipp Lahm: The Club World Cup and what happens next

Sports

add

As expected, the Club World Cup reflected the balance of power in football. There were three European teams and one from South America in the semi-finals, and the winner came from an all-European final.

But there were some great moments provided by teams from other confederations. Al Hilal’s victory against Manchester City was a tournament highlight, as was Fluminense’s win against Inter and their run through the competition. But the strongest football brands come from Europe. According to Deloitte’s Money Football League, all 20 clubs with the highest turnover are European, so that is hardly a surprise.

The purpose of tournaments like the Club World Cup is to measure global performance and develop football around the world. There has been criticism of it in Europe, understandably, but it’s FIFA’s job to weigh the interests of all continents, and so, from now on, the Club World Cup will be part of the calendar, alongside all the other club and international tournaments, many of which are getting larger and involving more and more teams.

It’s difficult, but important, and that’s going to require all kinds of adjustments and will create challenges over the coming decades.

First and foremost, it demands a schedule that is attractive and sensible. It will soon be unrealistic to expect seasons to be followed by long breaks in the summer and European football will have to come to terms with this. The clubs will have to find solutions to manage their resources. It will mean different squad planning, players having to be used in different rhythms across a season, and perhaps even changes to behaviours in the transfer market.

Coaches might have to manage squads differently to deal with demands (David Ramos/Getty Images)

Look at the current situation. Almost all of the elite clubs around Europe are back in pre-season training, yet players who were involved in the latter rounds of the Club World Cup are now, quite rightly, heading off for weeks of holiday. When the season starts, those teams will all be at a disadvantage, perhaps for months.

So, how do you manage that? They will need two players for every position, but that was probably true already. Perhaps coaches need two teams to work with? Money will not be an issue, but working life will change for players at these top teams and for those coaches who manage them — it will have to if players’ workloads are to be properly considered and the threat of burnout is taken seriously.

Heat is a factor, too, and the weather clearly impacted the Club World Cup — and not just because it was in the U.S., because rising temperatures are a global problem. For players, it’s clear. If the temperature exceeds 30C (86F), it becomes difficult for people to play sport, and if it exceeds 37C (99F), it becomes almost impossible.

I’ve played in heat before and it’s very uncomfortable — physically and mentally. People should listen to how the players describe their experiences. The games can become unattractive, too, and there were several matches during the recent tournament when the conditions made them duller spectacles.

This is a global issue, not an American one. In summer, temperatures rise to very high levels in many regions, across Asia, Africa, North America and South America and southern Europe. It has been extremely warm during the Women’s European Championship in Switzerland, too. So, if we don’t just want to limit ourselves to playing in Scandinavia or Alaska in the future, then we have to come up with something.

We could change kick-off times, move tournaments to the winter and even take a drinks break every 15 minutes. But does that really make sense? There is no way around air-conditioned stadiums. In Europe, that means they have to be sustainable, otherwise the idea won’t be accepted. After all, if people don’t come to the stadium, there’s no atmosphere. And if there’s no atmosphere, then there’s little value in football.

Perhaps we need more open conversations about how tournaments work and what kind of experience they afford everybody, players and fans.

It’s a difficult balance to strike, no doubt. From my time as tournament director for Euro 2024, sport in Europe must meet standards of sustainability, and the competitions need to be a compromise between all sorts of different interests. I dealt with that on a daily basis for six years, trying to find the balance between the freedom to travel, offering tickets at fair and affordable prices, and all the social considerations, too, so I know it’s not easy.

But we have to make it work. Football is for everyone, nobody should be excluded. We need to achieve that aim while still making sure that the tournaments can be the best experience they can be.

(Top photo: Luke Hales/Getty Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

Share on

email

Previous

Ricardinho Martins elogia Neymar e aposta ‘suas fichas’ no craque do Santos: “Vai para a Libertadores”

Futebol

Next

trending_flat

Without Caitlin Clark, the Fever lose again, although Cunningham and Mitchell shine with a personal best

Caitlin Clark - English