5 reasons why the Club World Cup is likely to succeed

In June, FIFA's largest project in recent years will kick off - the revamped Club World Cup 2025. Instead of the usual format, the new tournament will feature 32 teams from all confederations. However, criticism of this idea is growing, as it adds strain on players, and many matches don't seem attractive enough.

But it's not so straightforward. Dailysports has highlighted several reasons why the new Club World Cup might not be such a bad idea after all.

• Also read: Everything you need to know about the Africa Cup of Nations U20 2025: who will play, where and when the matches will take place

Reason one – money

Let's start with the obvious. More matches = more money. More top-tier matches = even more money.

You can find numerous complaints about FIFA's idea from representatives of Real Madrid and Manchester City. That is, from clubs that don't particularly need additional funding. But, for example, representatives of Bayern Munich, which isn't controlled by a single businessman or sheikhs, speak exclusively about the importance of the Club World Cup.

The prize fund for the Club World Cup is 1 billion dollars. Nothing like this has ever been seen in club football history. The winner will earn around 100 million euros, almost twice what the UEFA Champions League winner gets. The maximum amount a winner can earn if they win all matches is 125 million dollars.

The total prize fund is distributed as follows:

• Group stage: 2 million dollars for a win, 1 million per club for a draw
• Round of 16: +7.5 million
• Quarter-finals: +13.125 million
• Semi-finals: +21 million
• Runner-up: +30 million
• Champion: +40 million

425 million will be distributed among all participants, regardless of their results.

And while for European representatives such prizes will be just a pleasant bonus to their large budgets, for representatives from other continents, this money is almost an annual budget.

Brazilian, African, and Asian clubs will be able to invest the earned money in developing their facilities and improving academies. In the future, this will help nurture more new players who will go on to conquer Europe.

The Club World Cup will allow football to develop worldwide. And these are not just populist words.

Reason two – a showcase for European clubs

It's hard to assess the level of players from Brazilian, Japanese, and African clubs when they play exclusively on the domestic stage. It's a different story against the backdrop of Europe's best clubs.

The Club World Cup is an excellent opportunity for players to sell themselves to Europe. Some may shine and join a top club, while others might receive an invitation from one of the mid-level teams in France, Germany, or Italy.

And here we return again to the money issue, as less wealthy clubs will have the chance to profit from selling their leaders to Europe.

Reason three – Last dance

In recent years, there's been a noticeable increase in the number of football legends finishing their careers in other countries. While it used to be mainly Saudi Arabia and the USA, now such players can even be seen in Mexico.

The Club World Cup 2025 will be the penultimate major tournament for Lionel Messi and the last for Luis Suarez, Jordi Alba, and Sergio Busquets. We'll see Sergio Ramos and Thiago Silva at top-level competition for the last time.

Recently, rumors have even surfaced that the legendary Mats Hummels, who announced his retirement, might sign a short-term contract with Borussia Dortmund to play in the Club World Cup and replace the injured Nico Schlotterbeck.

Unfortunately, Al-Nassr didn't make it to the tournament, so we won't see Cristiano Ronaldo in the USA. Although there were rumors that some club might sign him on a short-term contract.

Reason four – stadium safety check

The safety situation in the world, unfortunately, is extremely unstable. This is especially true for the USA, where the national team World Cup will be held a year later.

Contrary to many predictions, the Club World Cup will undoubtedly have excellent attendance. There will be a particularly large influx from Mexico and South American countries, where fans have a relatively short distance to travel.

But there are indeed problems. It's no coincidence that Messi's security guard, who was banned from running on the field in MLS matches, asks not to make such a mistake. According to him, in the 20 months they've been in the USA, 16 people have rushed onto the field. This is a problem that needs to be addressed before the World Cup.

These matches will be an excellent opportunity for American law enforcement agencies to test stadium safety, and if any issues are identified, they'll have a whole year to address them.

Reason five – a mini version of the UEFA Champions League

The opinion that there will be too few top matches due to the large number of teams not from Europe is somewhat mistaken. In the group stage, there won't be many games between European representatives, but their matches with teams from South America certainly won't be dull.

But in the playoffs, it's highly likely we'll see a simplified version of the UEFA Champions League. Most likely, clubs like Real Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea, Inter, PSG, Atletico, and Bayern will advance. Matches between them in the decisive stages certainly won't be boring and will gather a significant audience both at the stadium and in front of screens.