LaLiga president launches extraordinary attack on Club World Cup piling further pressure on FIFA amid embarassment over empty seats
LaLiga president Javier Tebas has launched an extraordinary tirade against the Club World Cup, declaring it his 'goal' to eliminate the competition.
The Spanish football chief claimed the revamped tournament is a threat to the 'sustainability of football' and he would 'ensure there are no more Club World Cups'.
The expanded competition kicked off last weekend and has already come under fierce criticism for extending an already saturated footballing calendar.
While FIFA president Gianni Infantino promised there would be 'full stadiums in America' and that he had no concerns about ticket sales, the tournament has so far failed to fully capture the imagination of the American public, with swathes of empty seats at certain fixtures.
Chelsea 's opener against Los Angeles FC saw only 22,137 fans turn up at the 71,000 capacity Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
General admission tickets were on sale for £38 but such was the lack of interest that the entire top tier of the stadium was closed.
Speaking at a LaLiga event, Tebas said: 'My goal is to ensure there are no more Club World Cups, that's very clear.'
Asked if improvements could be made for future editions, he said there were 'no dates' in the footballing calendar left and the competition should be 'eliminated'.
'There are no dates,' the 62-year-old said. 'There's no need for yet another competition that moves money to a sector of clubs and players and comes from somewhere.
'There's no more money here; we have to maintain the ecosystem and eliminate it.
'Keep it as it was before, which was a weekend. There's no way, neither in terms of dates, nor economics, nor maintaining the sustainability of football.'
The LaLiga president admitted he had watched 25 minutes of Chelsea's 2-0 win over Los Angeles but criticised the fixture for looking like 'a preseason friendly', adding 'I didn't see any intensity'.
Chelsea's opener saw only 22,137 fans turn up at the 71,000 capacity Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Spanish sides Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are competing in the Club World Cup which takes place across the US and features 32 teams.
Previous iterations have included only seven teams and take place during the traditional footballing season.
Despite Tebas' concerns, Xabi Alonso's Los Blancos appear to be taking the tournament seriously and even paid Liverpool £10million to complete a transfer for Trent Alexander-Arnold in time for the competition.
Last week, Tebas also piled criticism on the Club World Club, branding it 'absurd' and claiming that FIFA had not 'consulted us about anything'.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
20 minutes ago
- BBC News
Gossip: Blues keen on Doyle
Birmingham are keen on former Man City midfielder Tommy Doyle, who has fallen out of favour at Wolves. (Birmingham Mail), externalWant more EFL transfer rumours? Check out Monday's full gossip columnFollow the gossip column on BBC Sport
Daily Mail
24 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Xabi Alonso and Thibaut Courtois rip into Real Madrid's 'sex scandal defender' Raul Asencio after he gets straight red card against Pachuca
Real Madrid defender Raul Asencio came in for criticism from his manager and team-mates after a sloppy red card against Pachuca on Sunday. The youngster was sent off just seven minutes into Madrid's 3-1 win over the Mexican side at the Club World Cup - after also giving away a penalty in the first game against Al-Hilal. Madrid are continuing to play Asencio despite him being accused of sharing a sexual video involving a 16-year-old girl who did not know she was being filmed. He is not in the clip and he denies any wrongdoing. Asencio dragged down Solomon Rondon when he was one-on-one with the goalkeeper just outside the box, earning his direct red card. A 10-man Madrid still dominated the Mexicans, claiming three points courtesy of goals from Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler, and Federico Valverde. Manager Xabi Alonso said: 'I will talk with Raul Asencio, but for sure, he needs to learn from these type of experiences. 'Asencio shouldn't have made that mistake. It's important that he knows that. 'Early in the game you need to take chances, but not make a foul for a red card. He's still young and this is an experience to think about for the future.' Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois added: 'It's two games and two times in a row with the same mistake. We need to be more intelligent and not commit these fouls.' Asencio has had a year of high-profile mistakes at Madrid. In their opening Club World Cup game - a 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal - he gave away a needless penalty after bringing down Leonardo. That was the third penalty he had conceded in 2025 - second only to Getafe's Omar Alderete out of all LaLiga stars. Lots of his focus has bene away from the pitch, where he is fighting a legal battle over the alleged distribution of a sexual video involving a minor. The 22-year-old football star allegedly solicited a video filmed by team-mates Ferran Ruiz, 22, Andres Garcia, 22, and Juan Rodriguez, 23, in June 2023 which involved a minor and another young girl, aged 16 and 18 respectively at the time. He is one of four former youth stars who has been accused in the case, though he was not present at the filming The Real Madrid man (right) was subject to 'Asencio, to jail' chants in the El Clasico last month The players are accused of 'disclosure of secrets without consent, and violation of privacy, distributing and sending videos to third parties without consent, capturing and using minors for pornographic purposes and possession of child pornography'. The judge in the case later clarified Asencio has not been charged with recording the video but remains indicted on charges of revealing secrets for showing the video to a third party and of child pornography. Asencio denied the charges in a lengthy statement in May. He and the three other players were arrested at Real Madrid's training centre in September 2023 following a complaint lodged by the mother of the 16-year-old girl who appears in the video. Asencio has established himself as a first-team regular in his breakthrough season at Madrid. In a statement, he said that documents from a Gran Canaria court indicated his possible involvement was limited 'to the possible momentary viewing of some images by a third party, without attributing any involvement to me in the recording or dissemination'. Fans at various stadiums around Spain have jeered the defender, with some Barcelona fans chanting 'Asencio, to jail' during El Clasico. Real Madrid's Copa del Rey semi-final win at Real Sociedad in February was briefly paused by the referee after home fans chanted 'Asencio die'. According to the court ruling, both women show symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder, Spanish sports outlet AS reported. The judge at the Gran Canaria High Court said there was enough evidence to support allegations of violation of privacy, distribution of videos to third parties without the victims' knowledge or consent, solicitation of a minor for pornographic purposes and possession of child pornography. Article 197 of Spain's Criminal Code states that any individual convicted of recording and sharing an explicit video of a minor will face between three-and-a-half and five years in prison. This would drop to a two-and-a-half to four-year prison sentence if found guilty of non-consensual recording. If Asencio is culpable of only sharing the video the sentence would be expected to be less severe. The authorities confirmed charges were filed by the mother of the 16-year-old girl over the alleged non-consensual filming of her daughter. The complainant has stated that the sexual activity was consensual, but the recording of it was not. Following his arrest in 2023, Asencio tried to have his part in the case dismissed in February by appealing to end the investigation into his alleged role, however the judge decided to uphold the decision to move ahead with the inquiry. Asencio has had his breakthrough campaign at Real this season and spoke about the allegations after being called up to the Spain national team for the first time. Last month he told RTVE: 'I think everyone is aware of what they are doing. For that reason, I am very calm. 'So, well, live day by day. In the end, it's a matter of deadlines. I have noticed this change of pressure on the pitches. 'It's logical, with the change of category (after Spain call-up). I'm a person who likes and is motivated by feeling that pressure. 'Since I was a kid, I'm used to feeling that pressure at Real Madrid. It makes me even more motivated.' He played 22 games for Carlo Ancelotti's side this season in a disappointing campaign for Los Blancos that looks set to finish without silverware. In February, Asencio went public on his relationship with Spanish influencer Selenia Suarez, who regularly attends the Bernabeu to watch him and is unrelated to the criminal case.
Daily Record
24 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Bojan Miovski transfer rules put Celtic on notice as Maeda doubles down and £9m defender timeline set
Business is kicking off at Celtic Park with Brendan Rodgers not stopping with the imminent arrival of Benjamin Nygren Celtic have been told exactly how much they will need to pay to snap up Bojan Miovski this summer. The former Aberdeen striker has endured a disappointing spell with Girona - netting just two goals for the La Liga outfit following his £6.8million exit from Pittodrie. His disappointing form has lead to reports in Spain suggesting he is a contender to be sold by the club as they look to balance the books in line with La Liga's strict financial rules. AS name-checked Celtic as an interested party in the North Macedonia striker this summer with a fee in the region of £5million floated. Girona sporting director Quique Cárcel admits the club would like to recoup what they paid for any outgoing stars - but conceded they must be "realistic" over deals for their fringe men. He told Ara:"We have people under contract. Football isn't that easy when it comes to changes, making a player leave or another arrive. "That's why there's a salary cap. We don't want to sell at a loss, and what we want is to sign cheaply, like the rest of the clubs. "We've planned an idea of what we'd like to execute, but what we must be realistic and work with common sense." That could leave suitors like Celtic to match the £6.8million forked out to their Scottish Premiership rivals last summer. The striker has vented his frustration over his season in Spain - with Girona tumbling from surprise title contenders to relegation scrappers in the space of 12 months. In an interview in his homeland he said: 'As a footballer, I always pick my clubs based on my style of play, and Girona was the best option for me. "It is important to note, it was not the best financial offer I got. But, as a player, my priority is to develop my game and be at a club where I will play regularly. 'Girona played attacking football. As a striker, I thought that I should join a team that created at least six or seven clear chances for the striker to score. "But unfortunately, that was not the case this season and it was the complete opposite compared to last.' A defender also appears to be on the Celtic shopping list with Hayato Inamura linked with a switch - with a bid for Red Star Belgrade defender Veljko Milosavljevic rejected. While the Serbian side are reportedly holding out for a £9million fee with PSG and Everton said to be chasing a deal, Meridian Sport claim that the club are unwilling to sell this summer and will push a deal for the 17-year-old wonderkid until the winter window. In terms of outgoings, Daizen Maeda may be gathering interest this summer but he has already hinted he is keen to stay at Celtic Park. And the 27-year-old has doubled down as he talked up his life in Glasgow, telling Sportiva:"I've been here for three and a half years now. I know the people around me, so I think it's a very comfortable place to live. "I don't speak English but I feel like if I were to have everyday conversations and things like that, I'd still be okay. It's really just about communication. I'm doing my best."
