MLS and FIFA on a Collision Course with the 2025 Club World Cup

Lately, soccer’s being pushed into a deep pit by this insatiable hunger for profit. The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is the latest controversial move from the organization, and honestly, I’m not sure soccer as we know it will survive this. Don Garber’s already sensing trouble. Even he one of the biggest names in U.S. sports, has publicly admitted he understands the heavy criticism aimed at this new tournament. And trust me, that’s no small thing. When someone as influential as Garber in a league like MLS starts waving the red flag, maybe it’s time to pause and listen.

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FIFA is Shooting Itself in the Foot

FIFA’s plan is to hold this Club World Cup with 12 European teams, stretching out the soccer calendar, which is already leaving players gasping for air. I mean, after a Champions League season that’s going to be dragged out to the breaking point, and right before an overblown 48 team World Cup, now we’ve got a brand new tournament to deal with?

Javier Tebas, the president of LaLiga, has already thrown fuel on the fire by calling for the tournament to be canceled. And honestly, can you blame him? Especially knowing that many players don’t even have time to recover from one match before they’re thrown into another. Some players are even talking about striking, and if that doesn’t tell you how serious the issue is, I don’t know what will.

Players on the Edge

We’ve got to be real here. Who’s at the heart of this mess? The players. The guys who sweat, bleed, and put their bodies on the line with every shot, every pass, every tackle. They’re being crushed by a calendar that doesn’t respect limits. And the worst part is, this Super Club World Cup isn’t just another event, it’s another drop that might just make the whole thing overflow. We’ve already seen FIFPro and other player associations file formal complaints with the European Union against FIFA, specifically because of the madness of an increasingly chaotic schedule. If they’re filing legal action, you know things are serious.

The irony here is that while FIFA’s expanding, the recovery time for these athletes is shrinking. Injuries are becoming more and more common, and what used to be exceptions are quickly becoming the rule. Shorter careers, lower performance, and a growing rift between clubs, leagues, and the federation.

More Soccer, Less Quality

Does more soccer mean better soccer? Because from where we’re standing, it seems like they’re throwing quantity at the wall and completely forgetting about quality. And don’t give me that “more games mean more excitement” argument. Not when the best players are exhausted, injured, and, honestly, unmotivated.

Even Garber admits there’s a concern about the oversaturation of the sport. And that’s exactly what’s happening. We’re getting to a point where you won’t be able to turn on your TV without stumbling across a soccer match. Sounds great, right? Wrong. There’s a limit. When everything becomes soccer all the time, the special events, the big games, lose their magic. They become ordinary.

The Necessary Intervention

But, ironically, it’s from this chaos that the solution might come. Garber touched on an interesting point, sometimes confusion and chaos are necessary to force change. And maybe, just maybe, this Club World Cup will be the final push needed to finally fix the global calendar.

If FIFA really wants to keep expanding its empire, it’s going to have to start paying attention to the signals being sent from all directions. And that doesn’t just mean listening to the big leagues like LaLiga or the Premier League. It also means paying attention to competitions like MLS and other emerging leagues that are starting to gain traction in key markets like the United States.

Is FIFA Listening?

The Club World Cup is set to take place from June 15 to July 13, 2025, right during the same period as the CONCACAF Gold Cup. And that’s just another complicating factor. How will it be possible to manage two major events at the same time? If FIFA doesn’t have a rock-solid Plan B, we could be looking at a complete collapse of the calendar, not just for MLS, but also for European leagues, which will need to reorganize to maintain their financial and competitive edge.

Garber warned that there’s a real danger of “over-saturation.” The market can handle a lot, but even it has its limits. If this trend of cramming the calendar continues, soccer’s going to become an inflated product where the spectacle takes a back seat.

FIFA seems determined to expand its global dominance, but it can’t keep ignoring the neon warning signs flashing all around. Players talking about strikes, leagues and unions taking legal action, and fan fatigue starting to weigh heavily, if FIFA doesn’t wake up, the beautiful game might just be in real trouble.