Club World Cup rules allow FIFA to resolve disputes between teams wishing to select the same player

GENEVA – FIFA will look into any disputes between Club World Cup teams each wanting to invite the same player to next year’s tournament in the United States, according to tournament rules released on Tuesday.

Planning a club event that coincides with the June 30 date when players’ contracts typically expire – as Kylian Mbappe did when he joined Real Madrid as a free agent from Paris Saint-Germain in July – prompted FIFA to seek solutions to new transfer problems.

The Club World Championship with the participation of 32 teams will take place from June 15 to July 13. Potential free agents on qualified teams include Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne, Bayern Munich trio Alphonso Davies, Joshua Kimmich and Leroy Sane, Inter Milan defender Denzel Dumfries and Madrid’s Ferland. Mehndi.

“If two clubs wish to include the same player on their provisional list, the FIFA general secretariat must decide for which club the player can be included after hearing all interested parties,” the world football body’s tournament rules say.

Club World Cup rules state that players must be on a provisional squad list approved by FIFA before they can be selected for the tournament’s final squad. Madrid and PSG are among the 12 teams from Europe.

Pending agents could officially begin negotiations in January with other clubs and reach an agreement to sign with them next season.

However, the start of the Club World Cup on June 15 is technically still in the season, and FIFA has given member federations the option of opening an exclusive transfer window from June 1 to 10 to promote deals.

This means that players from Europe will be able to play for one team in the Champions League final on May 31 and for another team 15 days later in the Club World Cup.

FIFA will also allow Club World Cup teams to change their squad midway through the tournament, from June 27 to July 3, to “replace players whose contracts have naturally expired.”

However, players can only represent one team at the Club World Cup and are not allowed to move and play for another team in the second half of the tournament.

FIFA has faced challenges in implementing its long-term plan to restart the Club World Cup as a month-long tournament that takes place every four years and brings tens of millions of dollars in prize money to elite teams.

The tournament still has no broadcast agreement, only one sponsor (although FIFA has promised others will be announced soon, most likely from Saudi Arabia), and is the subject of a formal complaint to the European Commission in Brussels by players’ unions and national leagues on how it was added to the crowded global football calendar.

Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti suggested in June that his legendary club might be ready to boycott FIFA’s invitation, but the European champion retracted this statement.

Any team that officially registers for the Club World Cup and then withdraws will be fined “at least 250,000 Swiss francs” ($290,000), FIFA said in Tuesday’s rules if the decision is made at least 30 days before the first game. Any exit after mid-May will be subject to a fine of “at least 500,000 Swiss francs” ($580,000).

FIFA has yet to confirm the tournament’s prize money or details of the tournament’s draw, which is expected in early December.

The 32nd and final entry from South America will be decided on November 30 in the Copa Libertadores final between Brazilian teams Atlético Mineiro and Botafogo in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Teams qualified by winning the Continental Club Championship from 2020 to 2024, or were highly rated for consistently performing well in the competition. Countries were limited to two entries unless they had more than two winners. Brazil will have four teams in the United States, while Mexico will have three.

Last month, FIFA added Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami to represent the host nation based on regular season results rather than waiting for the MLS Cup final on Dec. 7. Inter Miami will play the first game at the Miami Dolphins Stadium. stadium.

Tournament rules have confirmed that there will be no third-place game and player suspensions for red cards will not be carried forward to other competitions, such as the domestic league game in August.