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In our opinion, FIFA needs to use Lionel Messi to bolster interest in the 2025 Club World Cup by naming Inter Miami as CONCACAF’s final team for the tournament.
As hosts of the competition, the United States receives an extra slot. The Seattle Sounders previously booked a place in the tournament due to their triumph in the 2022 Champions Cup. Mexican trio Monterrey, Leon, and Pachuca also earned a spot at the competition because of similar successes.
Until now, FIFA had not publicly revealed whether it would award the final spot to the winner of the Supporters’ Shield or MLS Cup. Miami recently collected the Supporters’ Shield by having the best record in the league’s regular season. The Herons will also be favorites to win the MLS Cup, but the playoffs will not end until early December.
FIFA, we believe will not wait until the outcome of the MLS playoffs to pick the final team for the Club World Cup.
The move ultimately comes down to the governing body having difficulty selling broadcasting rights to the competition. Apple was previously in line to grab the media right for the tournament. Nevertheless, negotiations between the two sides broke off earlier this summer.
After Apple dropped out, FIFA launched an invitation to media companies to bid for the rights to the competition. As of press time, however, no broadcaster has signed up to televise the tournament next summer.
FIFA is now attempting to draw more interest in the 2025 Club World Cup by selecting Miami. The move is coming despite the fact that the MLS Cup final is seven weeks away. The governing body is well aware that the Floridian team is undoubtedly the most popular American soccer side worldwide.
Although the Herons only just began MLS play in 2020, interest in the team skyrocketed after they signed Lionel Messi last summer. Despite now being 37, Messi remains one of the most popular sports figures on the planet.
His advancing age also has not hindered his performances on the pitch either. In fact, the Argentine superstar has an incredible 19 goals and 12 assists in just 22 matches this season with Miami.
With a lack of interest from TV broadcasters in next summer’s competition, FIFA needs – in our opinion – Messi to sell the competition to the world. While other MLS teams could be worthy of a selection as well, Messi’s Miami will undoubtedly attract the most interest.
Recent rumors suggest that Saudi Arabia wants to invest money into the Club World Cup. If that happens, FIFA could use its streaming service FIFA+ to broadcast the games as a last resort.
The free streaming service is owned by the governing body of the sport. The move would allow all of the competition’s games to be streamed worldwide on the service. Saudi Arabia, particularly their tourism department, could then become the main sponsor for the tournament.
It remains to be seen, however, how much the Middle Eastern nation would pay for the sponsorship rights.
FIFA previously valued a broadcasting partnership for the Club World Cup at around $4 billion. Apple balked at this massive price tag in July after reportedly being willing to go as high as $1 billion
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