To be declared a world club champion in 1888, the Scottish Cup, had only one match against its English equivalent, West Bromwich Albion. Renton players, who were amateur athletes employed on a local graphics, were allegedly driven to port and egg wine victory. Although the dispute involved only two nations, the “world world” title was not absurd. At the time, virtually no one out of Britain played football seriously.
Since then, the competition for the title of best club in the world has intensified considerably. On Saturday (14), the latest reincarnation of the Club World Cup began in the United States, with 32 clubs from six continents. FIFA, organizer of the event and global sports governance agency, promotes this expanded tournament as a “new mass platform” that will yield “sports and financial benefits” —the total prize of $ 1 billion ($ 5.5 billion).
While the previous format was an annual fun in the middle of the European season with only seven teams, the Reformulated Quadrennial Club World Cup has the same structure as the competition for national teams. Its architects hope it will eventually become as popular as. It will certainly be more global. FIFA expects players from nearly 90 countries to participate – more than the number it has participated in all World Cups for national teams.
Countries that are usually strict with immigrants welcome them well in their domestic soccer alloys. There are over 1,000 Brazilians, 200 Spanish and 100 Nigerians playing in the main divisions of Asia. Even Brazil, the world’s largest source of football talent, houses dozens of foreign players from places as distant as Angola and South Korea. According to data from the Football Observatory, a research organization, the average number of expats in clubs around the world increased from 5.4 in 2017 to 6.5 in 2023, an increase of 20%. While globalization retreats in many domains, it thrives in the game.
It is not just players who cross borders: the culture of football also overflows. The tribalism of the intoxic sports sports everywhere. In matches in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, personal fans sing songs in Bahasa Indonesian, the local language, with melodies of the European stands. Even the unpleasant aspects of the game are imported: departures between Persija and Persib Bandung, their rivals, often come down to violence off the field. You can find groups of “ultras” – fanatical stores – in Sudan, Syria and El Salvador.
There are over 4,000 professional clubs around the world from Adelaide United in Australia to Zanaco FC in Zambia. However, even with club football spreading far beyond its origins in Europe, the continent remains the center of gravity of the sport. Europe teams are simply richer and better than the rest of the world. This difference was evident on Sunday (15), when Bayern Munich beat Auckland City 10-0. The German champion won € 765.4 million ($ 4.8 billion) in revenue last season; The stadium of the team receives 75 thousand fans every week. Its star striker Harry Kane is one of the best players in the world.
In contrast, New Zealand’s Auckland earned $ 650,000 ($ 3.5 million) and had an average audience of 400 people. Angus Kilkolly, one of the team’s strikers, has a daytime job at a painting company.
Such global disparities became rooted. According to Deloitte, a consultancy, Real Madrid of Spain, the richest club in the world, raised about € 1 billion ($ 6.39 billion) in the season 2023-24, more than five times the value earned by Flamengo, the richest club in Brazil and the only non-European among the top 30. As a result, talents around the world are absorbed by European clubs at increasingly younger ages.
Pelé, the king of football, spent his entire career during the 1960s and 1970s playing outside Europe. Diego Maradona was hired by Barcelona when she was 21 years old. The next generational talent, Lionel Messi, also from Argentina, moved to Europe when he was 13.
European dominance manifested itself on the field in the world tournaments of previous clubs, with the conquest of 16 of the last 17 titles. In this edition, the nine main favorites are all European. Some fans fear that this superiority can deprive the tournament of any suspense and, consequently, meaning.
The biggest criticism of the tournament, however, concerns its motivation. Many fans, especially in Europe, see bonanza as an attempt by FIFA to raise money. The World Cup for national teams is the most popular sports competition, but, as it is held only every four years, FIFA’s projected annual revenue of US $ 3.3 billion (R $ 18.17 billion) is overshadowed by US $ 7.6 billion) earned by UEFA, the European governance agency, which manages the annual champions league for its clubs.
Challenging Champions League prestige has been difficult even before a ball was kicked at the Club World Cup. Tickets have been difficult to sell; FIFA struggled to ensure a large transmission agreement before the tournament. In December, Dazn, a streaming service, finally bought rights for $ 1 billion – below FIFA’s initial target of about $ 4 billion. Saudi Arabia, which is deepening its involvement in football, is sponsoring the tournament through its public investment fund.
Still, non -European teams are enthusiastic about the tournament. South American football fans are always eager to show that they can beat Europeans. In Argentina and Brazil, local leagues adjusted their calendars to help their clubs succeed in the Club World Cup. And while the favorites are all European, betting likely to suggest that there is still about 20% a chance that one of the other teams can win the tournament. The best of the others would be comfortably in the middle of the table in most European leagues, according to OPTA classifications, a sports statistics company.
For many clubs, dribbling in the same field as Manchester City and PSG already counts as success. Global sport coverage can be biased in favor of Europe, but just as there is more in music than Taylor Swift, there is more in football than Premier League. The tournament will help Asian clubs “define themselves on the global map of football,” says Windsor John, secretary of AFC, the Asian Football Confederation. The feeling is echoed by CAF’s Luxolo SEPTEMBER, the African organ, who believes the tournament can change the global perceptions of football on the continent.
Europeans have set aside their cynicism before. Many initially scorned the World Cup. Today, this tournament, along with the Champions League, offers fans the emotions of a high quality competition. Competitions also give the unlikely competitors a moment to shine. The European elite is at the top of a vast pyramid of little known clubs, which move on in the belief that one day they will also prove some kind of glory. Such hope is, after all, what sustains the sport – and can feed the Club World Cup.
Text of The Economist, published under license. The original article in English can be found at www.economist.com.
