FIFA president Gianni Infantino says the Club World Cup is “the world’s most successful club competition in the world”, despite widespread criticism of the tournament.
Infantino, who has led the world football governing body since 2016, claims the tournament has generated more than $2 billion (£1.5 billion) in revenue, which he believes is worth “$33 million (£24 million) per match.”
As a result, he considers the competition a “huge success,” noting that “the golden era of global club football has begun.”
Infantino’s comments came just weeks after former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp declared the Club World Cup, which was relocated to the summer this year and extended to 32 teams, was “the worst idea ever implemented in football”.
Many matches have been poorly attended, with more than a million empty seats during the tournament, while players like Jude Bellingham, Reece James and Enzo Fernandez have criticised the weather conditions and quality of the pitches in the United States.
Chelsea midfielder Fernandez said the heat was “very dangerous”, while his manager Enzo Maresca complained it is “impossible” to have a normal training session.
Speaking at Trump Tower in New York on the eve of Sunday’s final between Chelsea and Paris St-Germain (20:00 BST), Infantino said: “The golden era of global club football has started.
“We can say definitely that this Fifa Club World Cup has been a huge, huge, huge success. Of course, there are a lot of positives, some negatives.
“We respect everyone’s opinion. It has been successful. We have had over 2.5 million in the stadium. That’s around 40,000 spectators per match – there is no league in the world with that number, except the Premier League which, of course, has home teams and these are neutral stadiums.
