Bayern Munich CEO asks fans to give the Club World Cup a chance

FIFA’s new Club World Cup has been met with immediate skepticism. Putting to a side FIFA’s rather unconvincing attempts to secure sponsorship and broadcasting deals and inconsistent planning of the tournament, fans were highly dubious of creating yet another tournament for players to play in. Both of football’s governing bodies, FIFA and UEFA, have increasingly garnered the reputation of dismissing the well being of top football players to earn more money by squeezing an unhealthy amount of games out of them ever year. Such tournaments do little to change anyone’s mind in that regard.

However, Bayern Munich CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen is optimistic that the tournament will be a success: “I’m convinced that the Club World Cup can be a tournament that will delight fans all over the world. The Club World Cup will develop a fascination that goes far beyond the old World Cup that was played annually in the past,” Dreesen claimed, as captured by @iMiaSanMia. “But I’m well aware that the Club World Cup is viewed critically by some. Even more commercialization and an even bigger burden on the players - these are usually the points of criticism. And of course: If we play all seven games of the tournament and reach the final, the burden will certainly be bigger than in a summer without a major tournament. We have to prepare for that. But we should also give new developments a chance.”

So what are the upsides of the tournament that fans can look forward to? Dreesen suggests the rarity of the tournament could be one interesting factor: “For us, it’s definitely an award and an honor to be part of this extraordinary tournament. The fact that it will only take place every four years and not every year as before will increase the value of the title. It’s a world cup - at club level. And players from smaller countries in particular have the chance to become world champions. That is exciting. It will be important that it also pays off financially for the clubs.”

In fact, while the summer tournament will only be held once every four year, the original Club World Cup will still be held annually during the winter. Still, he is right on the money in one regard: The tournament is supposed to earn all participating clubs a lot of money. There is little surprise that an executive of the club would want this extra cash.