Sports Betting Odds – All 20 Premier League clubs have come out in opposition of FIFA’s plans for biennial World Cups and extended international breaks.
World football’s governing body has been exploring the possibility of holding men’s and women’s World Cups every two years, with month-long international breaks in March and October to condense the qualifying process.
The plans have been publicly fronted by former Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger, FIFA’s chief of global football development.
However, English top-flight clubs have met to discuss the so-called post-2024 International Match Calendar reforms and are unanimously opposed to the proposals.
A statement from the Premier League read: “All 20 Premier League clubs have discussed the post-2024 International Match Calendar reform process and are unanimously opposed to FIFA’s proposal for biennial men’s World Cups, along with any plans involving significantly extended international windows.
“Clubs raised concerns about the negative impacts FIFA’s current proposals would have on player welfare, the fan experience, pre-season preparations and the quality of competitions.”
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters added: “The Premier League is committed to preventing any radical changes to the post-2024 FIFA International Match Calendar that would adversely affect player welfare and threaten the competitiveness, calendar, structures and traditions of domestic football.
“We are open to reforms and new ideas, but they must enhance the complementary balance between domestic and international football in order to improve the game at all levels.
“This process should also involve meaningful agreements with the leagues that provide the foundations for the game.
“We will continue to work with supporter groups, players, domestic and international stakeholders to find solutions that are in the best interests of football’s long-term future.”
Speaking to Rio Ferdinand’s YouTube channel earlier this week, Wenger said: “What I’m quite surprised [by] in a society which is anti-discriminatory, if you ask someone in the street whether a women’s World Cup every two years is good, they say ‘yes, fantastic, it will develop the women’s game’.
“Why is it bad for men then? That shows that the reluctance is basically emotional. We have all grown up in that cycle of [a World Cup] every four years and we want to keep it as it is.
“We see the split in our polls that the younger generations are in favour, the generation over 50 is against.
“We don’t have to be scared. The modern guy who watches football is knowledgeable, he’s demanding, he tests the quality of what he watches.
“There is a demand for quality, people today are knowledgeable and informed. We have the responsibility to give them top quality.”